


Pharmacists,Pheromones, & Friendship

by Elishaje



Category: B.A.P
Genre: Brother-Sister Relationships, Brotherly Love, Curiosity, Domestic Fluff, Friendship, Healing, Medical Trauma, Pack Dynamics, Pack Feels, Revenge, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-10
Updated: 2019-05-10
Packaged: 2020-02-29 12:10:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18778012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elishaje/pseuds/Elishaje
Summary: This is a side story to a piece an awesome author wrote. THIS WILL NOT MAKE SENSE UNLESS YOU READ IT.The author's name is ZainBAP and it is the series entitled "Best Absolute Puppies".This story takes place right after Part 6, "Blood In The Snow".This is the question I am answering: How/where are the wolves getting their medicine to heal after a long battle?





	1. The Night It Happened......

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [blood in the snow](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18503392) by [ZainBAP](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZainBAP/pseuds/ZainBAP). 



> PLEASE CHECK THE SUMMARY DESCRIPTION. This will not make sense unless you read the story this was inspired by.  
> Original Author:ZainBAP  
> Series: Best Absolute Puppies  
> Maybe, this time the wolves can make an unlikely friend.

_11:30 pm_

 

The first time it happened, you didn’t exactly know what to do.

You were sitting at the front desk of the pharmacy, just starting to doze off(it was just shy of midnight, and the only action you’d seen was good ole Miss Daisy, bringing you a mug of hot chocolate, asking how your house plants were, and refilling her heart medication) when you heard the first beaker break.

 

Sitting up so fast you almost tilted out of your chair head first, heart pounding, you tilted your head and prayed that the sound of glass hitting the floor was just part of your dream you were starting to have.

 

Silence. You held your breath.

 

The heater hummed in the background as a few birds chirped sleepily outside, signaling that they were getting ready to nest for the night. A light bulb, the one not right above your head but a few feet away, flickered persistently, and you sighed, _Damn, I gotta let Bryan order me a few more-_

 

Another glass, this time louder and heavier sounding, hit the floor.

 

Before you could even gasp a few more thuds, what sounded like crates this time, followed the glass shatter in tandem.

 

This one sounded too close for comfort, and before you even thought about it your fingers were already closing around the old baseball bat you kept next to the cash register.

 

The old sandalwood was a small comfort to your trembling fingers as you stood up slowly, reaching behind you to push your chair back across the tile without bringing too much attention to yourself.

 

_Scritch scritch. Scriiiiiiiiiitch……_

 

The legs of the chair always made a sound that gave you a sudden urge to scratch the back of your hand, but there was no time for that.

 

You lived in a small town in the mountains, with a grand population of 135. A few restaurants, 3 cafes, 1 college. A hospital. A clinic. Your pharmacy, inherited from your aunt. The postman dated the hairdresser. Old women gossiped like wildfire. Local hunters played poker every Thursday at the old saloon down the road. Neighbors greeted each other with a friendly smile as they went about their ways. There were two roads going in and out of town. The grocer was also the town mayor. Yeah, it was that small. Everyone knew each other.

 

_So who the **fuck** is in my storage room at midnight?_

 

You pressed the button underneath the cash register to lock the front door as you thought to yourself, _It’s just you and me now, Mr. Intruder_.

 

You pressed your back to the nearest wall and began creeping down towards the storage hallway, sliding your loafers along the floor and keeping your bat low and close to your body as you rounded the first bookshelf of diabetes medication and kept going.

 

The way the pharmacy was set up, everything was alphabetized. It was 2 letters of drugs per bookshelf. You had 8 more bookshelves to pass before you hit the corner. After the corner, there were 4 rooms-two bathroom, the inventory office, and the storage room.

 

You had been working there so long, you could walk the floor plan blindfolded with confidence.

 

Passing by the H/I bookshelf, you thought back to those self defense videos you and your friends used to laugh at back in college. The cheesy video that came on at 4 am. The man with leg warmers pointing at the screen as his backup dancers, all women with lithe, flexible bodies, did exaggerated dances and stretches in the background:

 

**_Protect yourself!!!Stand up for something, or fall down for anything!!!!Hurrah!!HURRAH!!!_ **

 

This was normally followed up by a testimony of some kind, as a perky lady with matching sweatbands and bright green tights would step forward with passion in her eyes.

 

_**I was once(insert ridiculous weight here), but ever since I joined this fitness program I have found myself again!!!If I can do it, so can you!!!** _

 

The man would point at the screen again.

 

**_There you have it folks!!!For 3 easy payments of $19.95, you can do it too!!!!_ **

 

This was followed by a phone number you could call to start your ‘healthy life’ journey.

 

For some reason, as your friends laughed themselves to sleep around you, you couldn’t help but smile as the man’s 3 steps of warding off a potential attacker.

 

**_Step 1-Be assertive!!!_ **

**_Step 2-Be loud!!!_ **

**_Step 3, and this is the big one-BE CRAZY!!!!hurrah!!!HURRAH!!!_ **

 

Now, as you were passing the R/S bookshelf, you could hear the rules going through your head like an insane mantra, and in spite of it all you couldn’t help but laugh, _Well, if these are my last thoughts, I don’t mind._

It was the thought of you potentially dying that sobered you up, and you focused on your breathing as in the room, your heartbeat filled your ears and your hands were starting to get clammy.

 

As you moved, switching walls, you could hear the shuffling get louder and louder, and you couldn’t help but be curious- _What is he/she looking for…..what are THEY looking for?_

 

You stopped dead in your tracks as you realized that you didn’t even think that there could be more than one robber breaking in.

 

Glancing over your shoulder, you were dismayed to realize that you left your phone next to the register, and the silent alarm for the police was up near the A/B register. Fuck.

 

You sighed-then yelped as someone growled in the storage room, followed by……yipping?

 

You let out a shaky laugh, _The robber brought a puppy along for the ride?_

 

You had just passed the men’s bathroom. Two more doors.

 

The woman’s bathroom was next, across the hallway but further down from the men’s door. _One more_.

 

The wall that you were pressing against opened up into the office, so the door opposite from that was……the storage room.

 

There was a low bark, a shuffle, and another yip.

 

 ** _Step 1-Be loud_**.

 

You gathered yourself, _It’s now or never. Grandfather, I might join you soon, but at least I didn’t go down without a fight._

 

In two strides you kicked open the door to storage, “HEY!!!!WHO’S BACK HERE?!I’M ARMED!!!! I’M ARM-”

 

You were prepared for many things-

 

-A homeless person had gotten drunk and somehow gotten into the storage window in the upper corner of the room-

 

-some kids had broken in on a dare, trying to impress the girl in their loner group-

 

-a bird had accidentally gotten in and was fluttering around in a blind panic, trying to find its way out-

 

-whelp, you were almost close on that last one. Almost.

 

You froze, feeling pain in your chest as you couldn’t breathe.

 

From a pile of gauze and bandages, a big dog, no, a _fucking WOLF_ was looking at you.

 

You almost dropped the bat in surprise as from the shattered window, another wolf’s shaggy head appeared. As you squinted in the bare moonlight filtering by its head, you could see that it was holding a first aid kit in its teeth. One of those red fanny pack ones that you were taught in med school that all helicopters and travel vessels should have at least 3 of-

 

You reached behind you with one hand and fumbled against the wall as the wolf that was in the pile of crates struggled to escape the wraps around its neck.

 

You winced as the sharp light from the swinging overhead came on, and as your eyes focused you realized that the wolf at the window was not only pulling on the fanny pack in its mouth, but also had a whole belt of them wrapped around its head. It was this chain that was preventing the lighter furred animal from backing out of the window, while the darker one was rolling around, trying to free itself from the mess it had gotten itself into.

 

The wolf in the window looked at you, tilted its head in what could only be described as curiosity before deciding a trembling woman in loafers wasn’t a threat, and the wolf on the ground did the same.

 

You had the most absurd urge to laugh as the wolf in the pile of bandages yipped and spun in a half circle, trying to free itself from the sticky gauze on one if its hind legs, but it was only making it worse, as far as you could tell.

 

“Oh dear,” you muttered, and that was the wrong thing to say-

 

-As both wolves stopped what they were doing to look at you. With a keen, almost predatory look this time.

 

“Oh _fuck_.”

 

The wolf in the window growled irritably as it wiggled side to side, trying to free its head, and as you took a step forward, raising your baseball bat,“Wait a minute-those are MY kits you’re stealing!!!”

 

The wolf in the bandages barked at you, distracting you as it lunged forward a few feet, and as you shrieked and backed off stumbling a bit on splintered wood the wolf in the window managed to get its head free.

“Shit-its getting away!!!” you stood back up and stepped forward again, and the wolf in the room with you barked, but it wasn’t as aggressive as it was before, and with a start you realized, “Hey-you just distracted me so your friend could escape. You sly creature you.”

 

The wolf whined as it dragged itself away from you, trying its best to pull at that gauze with its teeth, as your eyes adjusted, you could see that beneath the window, there were other crates stacked- this one was planning on climbing out, but then the box fell and it got trapped……and his friend just left him.

 

You sighed, _I can’t just watch him struggle_.

 

The wolf was rubbing its side, the one with the gaze stuck on it, against the wall in a back and forth motion, filling the room with a sandpaper-like grating noise as you lowered your bat, “Hey, I’ll help you.”

 

You suddenly wished you paid more attention in the mandatory veterinarian classes you had to take as the wolf looked at you with bright, citrine eyes as it took short breaths into its snout, and you lowered your baseball bat down and sighed, “If I report this, headquarters will think I’m crazy……”

 

Your adrenaline still on high alert, you laid your baseball bat down slowly for the wolf to see, and then, with it still watching, you kicked it off and to the side, away from the both of you. “Please wolf, don’t make me regret this,” you whispered to it as you stepped forward slowly, the wolf watching your every move.

 

When you were about 5 feet away, your feet stopped on their own. Some part of you was screaming to run away, scream and get help, but your voice died on your lips as the wolf cooed to you before inching forward on its belly, eyes lowered and ears relaxed.

 

It got close enough where you could count each spot around its eyes if you wanted to, its fur moving in the wind that was now coming in from the broken window pain-

 

-you shivered and brought your hands up to your thin white coat to button it-

 

-and the wolf yelped and jumped back, causing you to tilt over in surprise, “Whoa there-it’s alright!!We’re good!!!”

 

You were now crawling forward towards the hunched wolf, and you could almost see the fear in its eyes, along with an almost human like intelligence as it hesitantly put its snout forward.

 

You said a quick prayer and held your breath as you extended your hand out to its head-

 

-carefully, slowly, fingers splayed like a starfish, you brought your hand to touch the wolf’s snout,resting the pads of your fingers against the nose carefully before bringing your hand back towards its head, noting carefully as the wolf inhaled deeply as you were pretty sure it could hear your frantic heartbeat.

 

You petted it once, near an ear, and released air between your lips as its eyes closed and it tilted its head into your hand, seeming to accept your gentle touches for what they were-soothing.

 

You scratched behind one ear experimentally, and noted with a small sense of satisfaction that the wolf’s tail began thumping against the floor and its ears perked up in joy, “Well, your attitude changed quickly,but I guess mine did too.”

 

You scooted on your butt around to the wolf’s side and placed one hand on its back while the other hand reached for the sticky gauze, its beige cotton standing out against the massive animal’s winter brown speckled coat. You pulled on bits and pieces, here and there, all the while petting the wolf and talking to it softly, “I was minding my own business at the front desk. Business was slow, you guys were lucky I didn’t have to use my kung fu skills on you-”

 

You jumped as you were 2 pieces away form clearing the wolf completely, but you were surprised as the wolf huffed shortly, “Are…..are you laughing at me-just who or what are you-”

 

A deep howl cut through the air, ending the mood as the wolf stood up at attention so fast you fell over, “Wha-?!”

 

There was still a piece on its leg, but the wolf didn’t look like it cared-as another howl, rich and full of command, carried through the window and seemed to pass over you both.

 

The wolf brushed passed your leg quickly to get on the crate next to your head,and as you scrambled to your feet the wolf was so big that now it was on the same eye level as you, “W-wait, who’s gonna pay for this damage?!”

 

You jumped as the wolf leaned in to lick your check once, carefully, before hopping nimbly up onto the next crate, eyes twinkling and tail high. In the time it took you to blink, the second wolf was gone.

 

You stood there, seemingly enchanted, before a third howl rippled through the air, and you couldn’t help the smile on your face as you knew it was from the wolf who just ‘kissed’ you.

 

That smile slipped off your face, however, as you turned to survey the damage done to your storage room. _Fuck._

 

Squatting down, you picked up your bat as you looked around, calculating prices to repair the window, you noticed something-

 

-the wolves only touched the fanny packs. All of the other expensive antigen medicine and equipment were untouched. Everything that you had labeled the day before was pristine and left in its place, _hmmm………_

 

Sighing, you rubbed your eyes, _I’ll call the people in the morning, there’s nothing more I can do here_.

 

Stepping carefully over splintered wood, sawdust and glass, you walked back up to the front of the store and sat down. _Whomever wanted those first aid kits, they’ve got really well trained wolves….._

 

.........................................................................................................................................................….………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

Yongguk was a man of few words. It’s what his pack loved/hated about him, the one affected the most by this trait was his beta, Himchan.

 

Yongguk knew that Himchan wanted him to be more open for the sake of the younger members, but it wasn’t easy for him. Affection was almost a foreign concept for him. Himchan could easily drape his arm around Daehyun and laugh together. The maknae line could cuddle for _days_ and not be bothered-even Youngjae would occasionally lie across Junhong as they watched television together.

 

That was just too……much for the oldest man of the house.

 

However, when the attack happened, Yongguk realized that he needed to show his love for his pack. He needed more than just words, a simple touch here and there. There was something else that he needed to do. Sitting on the porch, the wind ruffling through his black fur, and 3 heartbeats behind him in the house, 2 more approaching from town, he realized that he almost lost Himchan and Daehyun to yesterday’s fight.

 

The thought that Daehyun, who needed constant reassurances of love everyday, almost dying without Yongguk telling him how much he loved him, caused a lance of pain to go through the alpha’s chest. He couldn’t imagine life without his beta, 3 deltas, or their beloved omega.

 

Yongguk took a deep breath, ready to release another massive howl from his throat, but stopped as soon as he got a whiff of Youngjae’s scent coming in through the trees, Junhong’s scent intertwining with it, his shoulders relaxed by just a fraction.

 

After what happened yesterday, Yongguk’s senses were on overdrive. He never left the house, barely ate, and was constantly doing rounds to check on the 3 injured members. If he wasn’t sitting by Jongup’s bedside, listening to his steady breathing as he slept, he would be in Daehyun’s room, resting his head against the bed and inhaling as much of his scent as he could. He would stay up all night with Himchan until Himchan’s eyelids drooped, and then he took his leave.

 

Now, more than ever, the urge to protect his pack overtook his human senses. The last time he was human was the morning before. The last time he actually had a spoken conversation was the _day_ before, when he passed Youngjae in the kitchen.

 

Words no longer mattered to him. His actions did.

 

Yongguk vowed that no creature on the planet would ever come close to his pack again. All threats were assessed by the alpha. All strange scents were evaluated by the alpha. If even a bird flew too close to the house, Yongguk would know about it.

 

Soon, the sounds of paws crunching through snow reached his ears, and with a sigh he focused his eyes on Youngjae and Junhong trudging up the hill, the delta draped with bundles of something and the omega looking dishevelled.

 

Youngjae froze in his tracks, and Junhong, who wasn’t expecting his hyung to stop, ran into his backside, and if the situation wasn’t severe Yongguk would’ve laughed. However, he was in no laughing mood, and the younger wolves could sense his displeasure. It practically broadcasted off of him in waves.

 

Youngjae’s ears twisted sadly to the side, but he kept his head up high as he looked at his alpha’s snout-to look into his eyes was too much and could be seen as a challenge- and huffed before brushing past him into the open door of the kitchen, Junhong skittering by without making eye contact at all.

 

As soon as both delta and omega were inside the kitchen, they began to shift back into their human forms, bones cracking and sliding back into place as Yongguk trailed in behind them, closing the door with his nose lightly as to not wake up the people sleeping upstairs.

 

As soon as Youngjae had a mouth he started, “Listen hyung, I knew you weren’t going to approve but we _needed_ supplies. Himchan’s bandages weren’t going to last through another night.”

 

Naked, pale skin everywhere, he stepped out of the bundles and held them up to the alpha, and Yongguk recognized the cross emblem on each bundle, “See? We are good for the next month or so, just in case,” the delta stopped, the words dying in his throat, but both alpha and omega new what he was going to say: _just in case we are attacked again._

 

Yongguk growled and headbutted Junhong in the leg, not gently, and Junhong protested, “Hyung, we were fine-nothing happened!!!Besides, Youngjae needed a bodyguard just in case those other wolves came back and you were on guard so I thought……it would be okay…”

 

His voice, which started off strong, began to shrink as Yongguk’s growling, which started off as a vibration in his neck, got louder until Junhong could practically feel his bones trembling in its magnitude.

 

The omega inside of him wanted to kneel and make peace immediately-no one wants an angry alpha around-but Junhong pride was stubborn, “Hyung, it’s fine,” and then he couldn’t help himself, “I’ll never disobey you again.”

 

Yongguk headbutted his other leg, but it was softer than the first one, and Junhong sighed.

 

Youngjae squatted, already ripping open the flimsy material and checking inventory, “Alright, so we’ve got ibuprofen here, plenty of gauze here, tourniquets,ointment, tweezers, vaseline….”

 

Yongguk was walking a very fine line of proud/irritation. He was proud of Youngjae for taking up initiative and getting what they needed, but he was also irritated because it wasn’t a well thought out plan.

 

The wolf with fur the color of midnight reached out and sank his teeth into the soft flesh of Youngjae’s shoulder-not enough to draw blood, but long enough to leave a mark that wouldn’t heal until the next day, and Youngjae shivered, “……I understand hyung. I won’t run off like that again.”

 

Yongguk huffed as he turned to look at the small mountain of supplies on the floor-

 

-but then a new scent, undisguised by pine cones and fur, stopped him dead in his tracks.

 

It was small but definitely there, a scent that almost seems to touch his nose like a ghostly lover-nervousness, sandalwood, and…… _perfume_?

 

Yongguk started to shift back to his human form, his lithe figure stretching out and cracking back into place as a hand reached out to run a hand through his hair, “………Why do you smell like a woman, Junhong?”

 

Both Youngjae and Junhong froze on the wooden floor, the delta mid-count in tablets and the omega reading the back of the ibuprofen bottle, and Junhong’s eyes peeked shyly at Yongguk from the safety of his bangs before looking down at his toes, “………….”

 

Yongguk smelt the omega’s fear, and sighed, “……….I’m not angry, Junhong, just disappointed.”

 

Junhong bit his lip,conceding in the gaze of his strong hyung, “………..We broke the window pane of the pharmacy and I accidentally knocked over a crate.”

 

Yongguk exhaled, and Junhong continued, “I ended up in some sticky bandages, and the pharmacy noona came in to investigate. We were…..kind of loud.”

 

Youngjae muttered to himself, “ _I_ wasn’t, that was all you,” but shrank into himself as Yongguk’s ears perked once, indicating that he head him. Yongguk looked him over, “But why sandalwood? Where did that come from?”

 

Youngjae smiled, “The pharmacist came in with an old baseball bat.”

 

The laughter escaped Yongguk’s throat, a pleasant rumble that filled the cozy room before he could help himself, and Junhong’s shoulders sagged in relief-if the alpha was laughing, then he couldn’t be in that much trouble, right?

 

Yongguk stood close to Junhong and took deep whiffs of his face, “………… But why is her scent strong here?”

 

Junhong closed his eyes, “……..She saw me struggling with the tape, so she petted my head and pulled the majority of it off.”

 

Youngjae snorted as Yongguk appeared to fight with himself inwardly, “So, you let her pet you? You _exposed_ yourself to her?”

 

Junhong shivered, “It wasn’t planned, I swear-my clumsiness just took over, and I wasn’t a threat or anything, I promise!!!”

 

 Youngjae nodded quickly, “We swear hyung, we were only there to grab the goods and then leave!!!”

 

Yongguk’s eyebrow went up, “Did you at least leave money on the counter for the damage?”

 

Both of the younger men’s ears flushed pink, giving Yongguk all the response he needed. Sighing, he opened his mouth-

 

-when a groan from the staircase had his head whipping around to find Himchan leaning against the doorway of the kitchen, “Sorry to intrude on your war council,” Yongguk was already crossing the room to put a supporting hand around the beta’s waist and guide him to the table as Youngjae hurriedly shoved the bottles out of Himchan’s path and Junhong pulled out a chair for him.

 

“A man could get used to this kind of treatment,” Himchan joked through gritted teeth as Yongguk sat him down on the chair, and Yongguk rumbled out sternly, “Why are you even up? You should be sleeping.”

 

Himchan rubbed the stubble on his chin with his good hand, “You lot woke me up-no I needed the exercise,I was cooped up all day” he was quick to add, as Junhong got sad puppy eyes and for the first time that night, Youngjae looked unsure of himself, and Yongguk sighed.

 

Himchan looked at the spread of medical supplies on the floor, the gestured for Youngjae, who was still knelling on the floor, to come to his side.

 

Almost instantly, the delta crawled over to Himchan’s side, and Himchan cupped Youngjae’s face, “Well done with the haul. I am impressed.”

 

Youngjae’s cheeks flushed in pleasure as Himchan stroked his head, running motherly fingers through his bangs as he also gestured Junhong to lean in, tilting his own face upwards so that the omega and beta were forehead to forehead.

 

Yongguk’s irritation began to fade at the sight of Himchan, albeit injured, still caring for the pack, as Junhong paused for all of 3 seconds before nuzzling his face into Himchan’s bedhead hair, “Thank you, hyung.”

 

Himchan grinned, but it was more of a grimace as he reached up and tugged at Junhong’s ear, “However, your alpha is right-what you did was dangerous, and you didn’t leave money for the pharmacy.”

 

Junhong straightened up, “I understand that we should be punished, but please-let us go into town and give noona the money before you punish us?”

 

He looked between Himchan and Yongguk with hopeful eyes, the older men communicating for a brief moment with just their eyes and eyebrows before Yongguk caved, “……Fine. In the morning, you will get dressed and go down to the pharmacy to give the pharmacist money-Leave. It. Anonymously.”

 

Youngjae snorted, “We aren’t amateurs, hyung.”

 

Yongguk growled, and the delta stood up quickly and went back to organizing the medical haul, recognizing his hyung’s silent warning.

 

“Do you want anything to drink hyung?” Junhong walked to the fridge while speaking over his shoulder at Himchan, and Himchan nodded, “Water, please. I’ll pop some of these pills that Youngjae picked up.”

 

Junhong stopped halfway there, “Wait-the pills that you have upstairs are finished?Are you in terrible pain?”

 

Himchan immediately raised one hand while pressing the other to his bandaged ribcage, “You forgot that we need higher dosage of pills-a wolf’s tolerance of medication is too high.”

 

Yongguk sighed in agreement. Of course. The average adult male only needed to take 2 to 5 pills to ease a migraine, but for a shifter, they had to take at least 10 to even feel a trickle of an effect. Between their bodies working overtime to heal and the extra meat they had started to eat for protein, and 3 men healing at the same time, the original pill supply was all but finished.

 

Junhong came over with a tall glass of water, and as Himchan took a sip and grimaced, Junhong shrugged, “You can’t have cold water so late at night hyung-your stomach will get all gassy and stuff.”

 

Himchan scoffed, but there was a fondness in his eyes that made Yongguk felt a surge of affection for his beta, “And who put you in charge?”

 

Junhong puffed out his chest as Himchan chuckled, but Youngjae was looking down at the mountain of pill bottles with a thoughtful expression, and Yongguk knew without a doubt he was up to something, “Youngjae.”

 

It was just his name, but instantly the delta looked up at his hyung, “Nothing, hyung-I just thought I picked up a stronger bottle of pills tonight, that’s all.”

 

Yongguk raised an eyebrow, “Don’t you go and bother that pharmacy woman again. We’ll make do with what we have here,” he cupped the back of Youngjae’s head, “I am irritated, but it’s true-you did well. You followed your heart and defied me. You’ll be a fine alpha some day.”

 

Youngjae closed his eyes and leaned into Yongguk’s shoulder, “I don’t want to go anywhere hyung-I’m right where I belong,” his muffled voice floated upwards into the room, causing Yongguk’s heart to skip a beat and Himchan to grin at him from the table.

 

Another warm body joined in the hug, and Yongguk turned his head slightly to welcome Junhong’s face against his forehead, “We’ve all we’ve got now. We’re fine that way.”

 


	2. Detective Work That Leads To Danger

The next day, you were up earlier than usual, sitting in the office chair and watching George, the grocer’s son, and a few of his friends tape off and measure wood to replace the window pane from last night.

 

You hadn’t slept well, tossing and turning as your dreams were filled with vampires, werewolves, and ghosts before you finally gave up, showered and got dressed and headed back to the scene of the crime.

 

Word had gotten around town about the break in, as Mr. Hinley in the antique shop next door had heard the strange noises from last night and decided to call the police.

 

 

By the time you rode your scooter into town, your scarf tight around your neck and hat pulled down low, there was a small crowd of onlookers standing outside the double doors of your pharmacy.

 

“I wonder who it could be?”

 

“Some idiot troublemakers, no doubt!!!”

 

“I heard howling too!!!Loud and shadows moving just outside my window!!!”

 

The smell of something dangerous was in the air, and as people chattered excitedly to themselves you sighed and parked your scooter at the side of the marble building.

 

Bob the electrician spotted you first, “There’s ________!!!”

 

As the crowd turned to look at you, people began surrounding you, bombarding you with questions as someone pressed a sandwich and a thermos into your hand as you pulled out a large ring of keys and began searching for the key to unlock the doors, “I’m completely fine, no I wasn’t attacked, yeah they got away, no, your viagra pills are fine, the insulin was untouched,” you stood on the porch of your pharmacy and held up both hands for peace as you spoke slowly, “I appreciate your concern. Some wild animals broke into the store last night,” you swallowed as memories of the one wolf’s eyes flashed through your mind, “but nothing of value was broken or taken. However, I will close the store for today because we have to fix the back room window,” a low grumbling passed through the crowd, displeased with this decision but coming to understand it, “Thank you all, and see you tomorrow at the usual time!!”

 

You chewed on your sandwich as George’s friend handed him a screwdriver, your thoughts occupied with the intelligent creatures that you saw the night before.

 

Granted, you weren’t a stranger to wildlife-after all, you lived on the side of a mountain and the seasons were still transitioning from late winter into early spring. You saw all kinds of wildlife, but the majority of them were shy, sweet herbivores. Wolves were shy-but they were not sweet or herbivores. In some cultures, they were revered as villains, supernatural creatures of vengeance, and in others they were omens of the beyond, not ones to be trifled with and highly dangerous.

 

However, last night……

 

You glanced down at your hand, the one that petted the tawny wolf, and sighed. _I wonder where they went…_.

 

You was jostled out of your thoughts by a rustling sound, but this time, it was coming from the front of the store, and it was in broad daylight so you didn’t’ feel threatened at all, _Would the wolves really come back again in the brightest time of the day?To steal some sunscreen,maybe?_

 

You giggled to yourself-then quickly apologized as George and his friends were now looking at you as though you’d lost your mind, “Its-it’s nothing.”

 

You peeked out of the window to catch two silhouettes standing on the porch of the pharmacy, but they were looking at something so intensely that you couldn’t help but crack open the window to get a closer look.

 

One boy had darker hair, with thicker bangs, and although the other one was taller than the first, his baby face clearly indicated his youth.

 

The older boy was squatting and staring at one of your flowerpots in front of the pharmacy’s entrance, pointing out something that you couldn’t quite hear over the wind, but the taller boy was nodding seriously.

 

You shrugged, and decided to call out the window, “Hey there~we’re closed for repairs, but if it’s an emergency, I can help you!!!”

 

Both boys jumped as they turned to look at you in surprise, and you waved to them-you hadn’t seen them around town, but that just made it exciting-the chance of making new friends was enough to make you happy. 

 

“I’ll be right around!!!”

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

Youngjae cursed to himself as Junhong was torn, looking at the double doors and looking at his hyung for guidance.

 

True to his word, Youngjae got up, got dressed, and got the exact amount of money for the window(and some for the first aid kits), put it in a nice envelope with an anonymous apology note, and tucked it underneath one of the plants you kept in the front on the porch.

 

He was explaining the different between a tulip and a tiger lily to the maknae when they caught a whiff of your perfume, followed shortly by your greeting.

 

“Hyung, we should go. We shouldn’t be here,” Junhong murmured to Youngjae as the other boy straightened up, “I know I know-we need to remember the exact trail we took last night, because I’m pretty sure there’s a bottle missing from what we carried last night.”

 

Youngjae turned and headed down the stairs, Junhong right behind him-

 

-when the double doors opened to reveal the pharmacist from last night, all smiles and pleasant, “Hey there, I’m ______, nice to meet you. Sorry about that, but I can’t let you in, we’re fixing up some stuff. Can I help you with something?”

 

Youngjae stiffened, as so did Junhong. Although they were part of their own pack, some part of their inner wolf instincts insisted that they turn around and greet their noona. As a female with new scents and not really a threat, the urge to sniff her and make introductions was altogether a new, but not  entirely unpleasant experience.

 

Junhong swallowed before calling over his shoulder, “Yeah, sorry about that, I think we just got lost. We were looking for the, the, ummm….”

 

Youngjae cursed. The maknae couldn’t lie to save his life.

 

The older boy turned around and bowed once, “We were looking for the flower shop. We saw your flowers and thought about getting some for our……mother.”

 

Well, that part wasn’t completely a lie. Youngjae was thinking about getting Himchan some flowers recently-the elder man’s birthday was next week.

 

The noona tilted her head to the side, “Ah, alright. The florist is 3 doors down from me, across from the baker’s hut. Tell her I sent you. She’ll give you a fantastic deal,” the woman stepped forward, “By the way, who are you guys? I practically know everyone in town, but I haven’t seen you around here before.”

 

Youngjae had already bowed and turned away, “Thank you for your help, we really should be going,” but Junhong couldn’t move, he was frozen to the spot as the pharmacist woman stepped forward, her voice confused and a little hurt at Youngjae’s coldness, “………You could at least tell me your names….?”

 

Junhong turned to look at her, to really look at her, and he held his breath. Here was the woman who helped him before, looking up at him with kindness all over her face, before kneeling by her flower pot, “Here-I’ll even give you some seeds so that you can tell Fiona exactly what you need-what’s this?”

 

 _Shit.Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit_ -

 

Youngjae grabbed Junhong by the arm and as the two of them hurried back the way they came, taking long strides, the pharmacist opened up the small packet she just found underneath the flowerpot.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………......................................................................................................................................................

 

You noticed the small ivory packet poking out from the clay pot, and as you pulled it out you could hear that there was something tinny inside, “What is this?”

 

You pulled open the flap to reveal a folded note and a handful of folded bills, “Say what….?”

 

The note read as such:

 

_We’re really sorry about last night. Please use this to cover the expenses. It won’t happen again._

 

Your head snapped up to see the tall boy turn the corner, just where one of the roads went off main street and onto the trail for hiking, “Hey-HEY!!!!”

 

 _To hell with construction and windowpanes_.

 

You ran back into the office and pulled out your wallet, surprising George and the staff, who were about 70% of the way finished with the repairs, “Here’s some cash-not only for a job well done, but drinks are on me tonight!!!I have to go run an errand, I’ll be back later!!!”

 

Without waiting for a proper response, you pulled on your heavier coat and scarf and hurried back to your scooter, thanking the deities that although the roads still had snow, there was no new snowfall reports for the rest of the day.

 

Starting up the bike, you turned out of the parking lot and headed towards the hiking trail.

 

….……………………………………………………………………………………................................................................................................................................................................

 

Youngjae and Junhong had sped walked all the way to the end of the road-as soon as the woman’s voice shouted, they looked at each other, and with one nod they knew what they would do.

 

As soon as they passed the first mile marker Youngjae began stripping down, Junhong following his lead and as they quickly balled up their clothes and stuffed them into a hollow tree trunk they morphed from human to wolf. Taking off as a pair between the trees, nothing but a blur of brown and tawny as they began the race back home-

 

-So quickly were they trying to shake the woman behind them, that as Youngjae bounded over an old mulberry bush his front paw landed on something and it shattered on impact.

 

As warm liquid spread between his toes, Youngjae looked down to see that the bottle of oxycodon, the expensive painkiller he needed for his hyung, was cracked and some of it leaked out onto his foot.

 

Junhong trotted back down from the small hill he was on and yipped in concern, but Youngjae shook his head once, _I’m fine_.

 

The sound of a small motor was closing in from somewhere behind them, and Youngjae ran away from the scene, Junhong on his heels, not realizing he was leaving a trail of pink footprints behind.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………......................................................................................................................................................

 

You were slowly going up the hill in your scooter,knowing all the while that your scooter’s tires weren’t meant for snow and barely had traction. At some point you were going to have to walk the rest of the way, but you didn’t care.

 

Somewhere, just ahead of you in this wilderness, were the people who vandalized your store, and you were going to bring them to justice.

 

You squinted as the wind picked up, and you pulled over to the side of the trail and chained your scooter to a tree nearby.

 

Walking around for a little bit, you shoved your hands into your coat pockets and began to march through some bushes that was recently disturbed-branches were cracked and strewn about, as though something big had just passed through them.

 

You paused, as you thought about the two wolves you saw last night. Your hand went up to touch your cheek where the darker wolf licked you, and a blush passed over your face before you shivered, the biting wind bringing you back to reality, _Whoa……why am I blushing?_ _That was unexpected_ -

 

Your boot landed on something that crunched, but upon quick inspection revealed that it wasn’t a pine cone or twig-it was the bottom of a glass bottle. Squatting down and using one hand to hold your scarf around your lips, your other hand swept away some fresh snow to reveal a familiar blue label, “Hey…..this is from my store!!!”

 

You would cheer if you had the strength to, and as you looked to the side you noticed a trail of footprints leading a ways up the side of the hill. Already your pharmacist logic began whispering to you from the corner of your brain, _Oxycodon only reacts lightly when the wound was fresh…..the **darker** the chemical residue, the **more serious** the wound is….this looks like someone stepped on the bottle and didn’t realize it-but wait, these **aren’t** human footprints…_

 

You stopped dead in your tracks as from somewhere over your shoulder, to the right and a few yards away, you heard a low growl…….

 

_Fucking Christ……………._

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………...............................................................................................................................................

 

 

Yongguk was waiting for them on the porch when the winds started to pick up. He could feel the shift in the weather since that morning, and he was anxious for the whole pack to be together under one roof before the storm started.

 

When he smelled Youngjae and Junhong’s scent coming up the hill and making its way home, with the smallest tinge of blood, Yongguk had already dropped to all fours,shifted, and was ready to greet the delta and omega when they rounded the last bush and were in sight of the house.

 

Youngjae was walking fine, and although he gingerly placed one paw down he was brushing off Junhong’s concern for him. The omega barked a casual greeting towards Yongguk, who was already hovering over Youngjae and sniffing his leg, with the delta huffing and pushing away his alpha with his nose, his ears straight, _I’m fine, I’m fine, I promise._

 

Jongup and Daehyun were relaxing on the couch, but when the familiar sounds of paws and barking reached their ears the other deltas straightened up, the familiar pull of the pack tugging at their hearts as Youngjae walked in first, naked as the day he was born, “I promise, I’m fine,” he was followed closely by an equally naked Junhong and Yongguk, and there was a smell of affection followed by a tinge of disappointment, as Jongup quickly draped a blanket over his hyung, wincing as a scratch on his arm protested because of his sudden movement, “How did it go hyung?”

 

Youngjae sighed, “We left the money, but I discovered where I dropped that expensive bottle of medicine,” the speaker lifted his foot to examine his soft insole, and noted with satisfaction that the small cut was already starting to heal over, and Daehyun leaned in to ruffle the back of Youngjae’s head, “Don’t feel bad, you did well otherwise. We’re stocked up thanks to you.”

 

Youngjae blushed-just like Yongguk, the man wasn’t used to outwards signs of affection, but Yongguk noticed that his shoulders relaxing gradually as he slouched in the chair, Daehyun’s fingers still on his scalp, and Junhong relaxed his long limbs around the oldest delta, reaching out and brushing the back of his knuckles against Daehyun’s lips, taking care not to aggravate the new scar tissue forming there, “Hyung……..”

 

Daehyun licked his lips as Junhong leaned in and nuzzled his unmarred cheek with his nose, inhaling his scent, “I can’t wait to hear you howl again.”

 

Daehyun chuckled, “Hopefully I won’t be in danger the next time I do it,” Although he said it lightly, Yongguk’s chest tightened and he looked away as Youngjae reached over to squeeze Daehyun’s thigh lightly-

 

-but it was Himchan leaning against the doorjamb who got everyone’s attention, “Your female friend is back,” he laughed as Junhong and Youngjae looked surprised, “She followed you up the hill, I can smell her perfume, she’s on the side path by the springs, a persistent one, she is,” Himchan came and squeezed in next to Jongup, “We should have her over for dinner sometime.”

 

Yongguk rubbed the space between his eyes as Jongup looked confused while Junhong looked guilty, “Hyung…..” Himchan winked at the omega, “I’m sure we’d have a lot to talk about-”

 

A howl cut through the air, a howl that brought Daehyun to his feet and Youngjae at his side as Daehyun’s lips trembled, “It’s one of the wolves, from before. He’s gonna hurt her- _ughk_!!” The oldest delta took a step forward, and staggered on his twisted ankle- Yongguk came forward and steadied him, pushing him to sit back onto the couch with a firm, “No. Stay here,” he looked over at Himchan, who looked back at him with steady eyes, “I’ll hold the fort.”

 

The room could feel the swell of affection that the alpha had for his beta, but that feeling quickly transformed into a potent blend of rage as Yongguk thought about the fact that one if not _all_ of the wolves that had the nerve, the courage to attack his pack-his family, his friends, and _came back_? And to also attack an _innocent woman_?

 

He was back into his wolf mode, his front paws landing heavily onto the carpet, his shaggy fur erupting quickly with the urgency of his shift, and without looking behind him Yongguk knew that Youngjae and Junhong had transformed behind him. The alpha turned and stared Junhong down, the message clear in his eyes, _stay here. We need at least one uninjured wolf here, just in case they get past me._

 

Junhong growled, and Himchan tugged on the omega’s tail lightly, “Noble to the core-but the kids and I do need you here,” he nodded towards Youngjae and Yongguk, and without another word the two wolves bounded out the front door, with Yongguk taking the lead and Youngjae hot on his tail.

 

….……………………………………………………………………………………………….................................................................................................................................................

 

You stumbled onto your butt, but you didn’t even feel the cold snow seeping into your jeans as from behind a tree a wolf appeared-but this wolf was clearly not one of the wolves from the night before.

 

Crouching low, growling menacingly, and what looked to be blood dripping from its grinning maw, the darkish wolf raised its head and sniffed the air, and you realized that the wolf could realize that you were here, scared and alone, and as it lowered its head you scrambled to your feet and quickly looked for a way out-

 

-only to shriek as another wolf, this one the color of copper left out in the sun, came from behind another bush and growled at you, stalking towards you as you realized again, that they were backing you up against an oak tree.

 

Your back hit the rough tree trunk behind you, hitting it with enough force that snow and leaves rained down from above, and as the first wolf snapped its jaws hungrily you reached upwards for a low hanging branch and tried yanking on it, but you were shaking so hard that you kept loosing your grip on the cold timber, “Fuck-stay back, _stay back!!!”_

 

The second wolf nipped at your ankle, and as you jumped back you managed to tug off a part of the branch, giving you a jagged splinter about 7 inches long and 2 inches thick-

 

-this you held in front of you like a dagger, and as you swung it around in a shaky circle, screaming at the wolves, another one appeared, and this one you just felt, deep down in your soul, was the leader.

 

Fur matted with dirt, a deep scar around its neck and one eyeball missing form previous battles, the wolf bore down on you with death in its eyes as you sank down to your knees, the fear creeping up from below as you sent up a silent prayer to anyone who would listen-

 

 _Please, pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease if you’re out there please don’t let me die like this_ -

 

You were answered by a crunch, a snap, the angriest growl you’ve ever heard, and as your heart almost jumped out of your chest a massive, black wolf jumped out from the thicket behind your tree and landed on the battle scarred wolf.

 

You were too surprised to even make a sound as another wolf, this one looking familiar in its fur pattern, bounded out with a loud bark and lunged for the copper colored wolf, teeth gnashing and claws bearing in the increasing snow storm.

 

You scrambled to your feet and stumbled forward blindly as the veteran wolf, clearly surprised by the sudden ambush, began to fight back against the black wolf, matching it blow for blow as the splattered wolf and the copper wolf landed in a whirlwind of fur and fangs into a nearby tree, yipping and the sounds of ripping flesh filling the air-

 

-but there was still one wolf that didn’t have a battle partner, and it turned on you with hungry eyes-

 

-you shrieked as you found yourself pinned down underneath  a heavy weight, with jaws snapping for your face and putrid breath from the creature’s mouth filling your nose-

 

-on sheer reflex, you swung your arm upwards, the one holding the jagged piece of wood, and stabbed upwards in a wild, untrained motion-

 

-the wolf howled in pain and surprise as you reached upwards with your other hand and pushed outwards, driving the splinter into its gut as you rolled away from the wolf-

 

-as the wolf staggered away and fell in the snow, the blood from its wound spilling out into the snow in blooming flower patterns as you looked down at your own shaking hands, noticing that in the fray, you hand some of that wolf’s blood on your hands-

 

-you were pretty sure it wasn’t a fatal wound, but the battle veteran had seen its friend go down and was now coming for you-

 

-it tossed the black wolf to the side like a heavy bag of potatoes and was bearing down on you, growling and lunging for your throat-

 

-you screamed and turned to try to run away, but you stepped down awkwardly on a dead log and fell to your side-

 

-the wolf closed its jaws around your scarf in frustration and began to gnaw at it, swinging its head this way and that as you were helpless to pull off your scarf-it was tangled up over and around your shoulder as the wolf now tried to claw through your jacket, aiming for your slowly exposing throat-

 

-not knowing what to do, you began to flail like a madman, swinging your limbs out with all of your might and hoping one of them would connect somewhere-

 

-sure enough, as your pressed your eyes shut against the wind your boot connected with the wolf’s side and pushed it away, causing you to scramble away from it in sheer terror as you pulled your scarf from your face and pulled it completely off-

 

-the wolf landed on your back, causing you to drop to your knees in pain as it began to swipe at your nape to expose your skin-

 

-it bit down, but its fangs didn’t connect because your coat was too thick-

 

-a pained yelp from your side caused you to look and see your wolf from last night get tossed to the ground as the copper wolf stood over him-

 

-the black wolf, now on its second wind, launched up from nowhere and landed on the wolf that was attacking you, and as the two of them rolled away in their own feral blitz you screamed at the copper wolf, “Don’t you touch him!!!”

 

-the wolf looked just as surprised as you were, for suddenly you were an angry woman, tired and dirty and cold and shivering and lost and now there was something trying to kill you and you were just _over_ the whole thing-

 

You kicked out at the copper wolf, screaming with the strength that you had left and punching at its head, short jabs and kicks as the copper wolf, now wary of the screaming lunatic in the form of a woman, whimpered and started to move away as you realized something, “You’re just a fucking coward, aren’t you-AREN’T YOU!!!?!COWARD!!!”

 

-the wolf that you knew from last night got to its feet and stood in front of you protectively, growling low before launching itself at the copper wolf-

 

-you turned just in time to see the wolf that you injured jump on the back of the black wolf, the one that saved you from the battle scarred wolf, and it went down with a surprised cry as it bit into its powerful front leg-

 

-but you were a woman on a mission, “Get away from him!!!”

 

Scrambling over the snow, reaching for your scarf, you leaped forward with both ends of your scarf fisted in both hands and threw the open loop of the scarf into the air like a lasso-

 

-the wolf that was injured yelped in surprise as the material caught it around its snout, pulling it off of the black wolf’s leg as you yanked backwards, falling down in the snow but you didn’t care-

 

-the black wolf was able to find its bearings and get back into battle as you yanked the wolf away, dragging it to the ground as a triumphant howl sounded from your right-

 

-you turned to see your splattered wolf standing triumphant over a very dead copper wolf, its throat ripped out but your wolf’s eyes were bright in its victory-

 

-the wolf came over and landed on the battle veteran, biting at its flanks as the black wolf dealt with its jaws, but the black wolf did something surprising-

 

-the black wolf barked a warning growl to the splattered wolf, a growl that told it to stay away, and you just knew. You didn’t know how you knew that’s what the growl meant, but you knew. That growl just said, _stay back, he’s all mine_.

 

The wolf hesitated for all of 5 seconds before turning around and coming to your side, where you were still struggling with the tangled up wolf, who had slowed down once it saw that its partner in crime was dead-

 

-The wolf nosed at your hands in a way that it wanted you to let go of your scarf, and as you dropped your scarf, the wolf growled and dragged the ends of the scarf in a way that was too smart-

 

-the splattered wolf wrapped the struggling wolf in your scarf and tied the ends of the now frayed scarf roughly into a big knot, leaving the wolf to struggle in the stringed mess as you sank to your knees, the cold now seeping into your shirt and socks as the black wolf flipped the battle veteran onto its back for the killing blow.

 

With a vicious snap of the jaw and a howl though the air, the black wolf tore out the throat of its enemy, exposing its trachea to the world and sending what was unmistakably a message to any other creature watching the scene, and you trembled as the black wolf padded down, growling at the wolf who was wrapped up in your scarf, now limp and whimpering from its injuries, and came and looked at you.

 

All of your adrenaline left your body, and it was replaced with cold, cold fear. You suddenly felt small and insignificant in the ways of the world, the ways of nature, and you were starting to regret coming out to the mountain.

 

 _It dawned on you that you could have died today_.

 

You shakily wiped frozen tears from your cheek with your forearm, hurriedly swiping your hands against the snow as you realized that the wolf’s blood was starting to crust on your hands and you didn’t want that at all.

 

The splattered wolf looked at the black wolf steadily, and they seemed to have a moment of communication between them as you struggled to stand up, but found that you couldn’t-not because of pain, but because of shock.

 

The black wolf came to your side, sniffing you once before seeming satisfied with some hidden answer, and, to your surprise, began pulling at your jacket’s sleeve, as if in a ‘ _come this way_ ’ sort of motion, and it stood patiently by you as you stood up slowly, on one leg and then the other, steadying your weight carefully as you tried to focus on its form in the wind. You shivered as the wind cleared its throat and announced itself with more authority- your exposed neck now felt the brunt of the wind, causing your hair to whip around your face as you reached out with a hand and fumbled for equilibrium.

 

The black wolf came up behind you and pressed its massive head firmly in the small of your back, guiding up up the hidden path of branches and crunchy leaves as you struggled to find your footing in this rough terrain.

 

You had some strange feeling in your stomach, a feeling that was compelling you to finish what you had started, and that somehow, you could trust the wolf that was trudging along behind you and taking care that it wasn’t pushing you too hard over falling logs and hidden foot traps.

 

Soon, a massive house came into view, and as you approached the front porch, the door flew open and there stood the tall boy from before, “_______-noona…..”

 

He was wearing nothing but a towel around his waist, but that wasn’t what bothered you.

 

What bothered you was that his eyes were flashing between brown and gold, the same gold as the wolf from the night before.

 

You opened your mouth to respond, but you were too surprised to say anything, and the next thing you knew, your eyes fluttered shut and you were falling forward….

 


	3. Getting Acquainted Over Dinner And A Little Torture

Junhong quickly stepped forward and caught the fainting woman, guiding her into the house as Yongguk shifted behind him, Youngjae bringing up the rear as the delta closed the door behind them.

 

Immediately Himchan gestured for Junhong to lay the woman near the fire Jongup built, the sweet smelling wood crackling cheerfully through the room as the beta looked her over, “She’s just fainted from shock, give her a moment,” Himchan looked at the others, and Yongguk answered his unspoken question, “We’re fine, they weren’t expecting us.”

 

Daehyun took a deep whiff, “Two wolves are dead, but the last one…..?” Youngjae huffed, “He’s tied up in noona’s scarf behind the house-we’ll deal with him later.”

 

Yongguk accepted a towel handed to him by Jongup and began wiping his face off carefully, remembering the metallic taste of the other wolf’s blood in his mouth. The fear in his eyes when he surprised them. Their flesh beneath his fingertips…..

 

Yongguk stepped out into the hallway to take deep breaths and try to calm his predatory side down, trying to tell it that the threat had passed, but it wasn’t so easy….

 

Meanwhile, Junhong pulled on some loose sweatpants and was laid out on his side, facing the pharmacist and watching her face carefully as Himchan snorted, “Hmm, are you sure you haven’t imprinted on her, Junhong-ah?”

 

The omega shook his head, “No, it’s not that……I think I understand her. She’s lonely, just like we are,” the tallest man in the room reached out and tucked some of her hair behind her ears as Daehyun squatted at her feet, “……..She isn’t warming up well. We have to get her out of those clothes.Her undergarments are fine, just her coat and sweater and jeans that have to go.”

 

Himchan gestured to Jongup, “Okay, just in case she wakes up while we’re doing this, I think only two of us should be in here. We will change her. Yongguk can help me. Junhong, grab some pants and a shirt from my closet-fresh clothes, please. The fire should do the rest.”

 

Daehyun, Jongup and Youngjae took their leave as Junhong bounded up the stairs for clothes, and when he returned Yongguk took his place and Himchan directed him on what to do carefully, noting with a certain glee that Yongguk was very humbled and moved without any objection, “……She smells like wolf blood herself….”

 

Yongguk smiled in spite of the turmoil in his head, “She was very brave today. This woman…..she fought with more honor that I have seen in recent times,” Himchan sat her up carefully to shimmy her out of the tattered coat and first sweater to pull on the clean t-shirt, wincing as his ribs started to strain against the pressure, “Is that you talking, or your wolf talking?”

 

Yongguk turned to meet his beta’s eyes in the dim light of the fireplace, “I thought they were the same thing?” Himchan smiled mysteriously as Yongguk pulled off the woman’s boots and pants before quickly slipping her into the pants, “You still have a long ways to go, my friend.”

 

The others came in, Junhong first as he pushed away the dirty clothes and resumed his position, laying parallel from her as she rested, and Yongguk spoke quietly to the others, his volume no more than a rumble passing through the room, “The storm will pass in 2 days. She will stay here in the meantime.”

 

Everyone nodded as Youngjae bristled, “That wolf had better have some answers for us- I left him by the shed,” Himchan stood up carefully and deliberately, “You have done exceptionally well, Youngjae. There is a high chance that he is a shifter from a rival pack-I will get answers from him.”

 

A soft sound coming from the woman’s throat had everyone’s heads turning in her direction, and Yongguk could hear her heart rate picking up as she came to her senses….

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………................................................................................................................................................

 

You opened your eyes to find yourself looking up at a wooden ceiling, the planks sturdy and bonded in a slanted angle over your head as heat from behind you and a crackling sound let you know that you were by a fire. Someone inhaled to your left, and you turned your head slowly to see the tall boy from before sitting near you, looking at you with a curious but guarded expression on his face, and someone else coughed.

 

You turned your head quickly to see that there were more people in the room, and it quickly became apparent that you were the only woman in the house, “Wha-” you coughed, and from nowhere someone handed you a mug of water, which you took gratefully, taking a long swig before trying to speak again, “What is this? Where am I?”

 

You looked down to see that you weren’t in your clothes, and as another familiar face came closer, the man with the cheeks and bangs, you shook your head to get rid of the mental cobwebs, “It’s you…… _and that letter_!!!”

 

The other men-3 of which were injured in various ways and bandaged up, while the last one stood away from you- looked confused as the tall boy let out a shaky laugh, and as the man with bangs puffed out his cheeks and sighed, you took another sip of water, “……….You have some really well trained dogs/wolves here. Are you guys hunters?”

 

There was silence in the room as everyone gaped at you-including the man farthest away form you, who turned at looked at you with such a genuine expression of surprise on his face that you couldn’t help but laugh, “What? It’s true. I am impressed,” a sudden memory- _golden eyes, thick fur, screaming, a splinter baptized in blood_ \- and you dropped the mug to the carpet, “?!”

 

The tall boy fumbled to catch the mug before it rolled away, and you pressed a hand to your head to soothe away a sudden migraine, a man sitting in an armchair leaned forward, focusing his black eyes on you, “________. Miss ________.Take deep breaths.Follow my voice.”

 

The man’s husky voice cut through the pain now vibrating behind your eyes, and you did your best to focus as soft padding sounds away from you indicated that someone had left the room quickly, “Count backwards from 10-slowly. There we go.”

 

Out of the corner of his eye, Himchan could see that the pack members who didn’t have sisters(he pushed down a certain memory of his own for another day, her laughter as bright as the sun) doing their best to adjust to this foreign woman on their territory.

 

Daehyun’s nose was twitching underneath his mask as he was greedily sucking up all the information he could from her scent alone-she wasn’t married, had no children, and was tired. Jongup looked like he wanted to either hit or hug something, the way his hands kept clenching and relaxing at his sides. Youngjae and Junhong were better off, seeing as they met _______ last night, but the urge to comfort her was weighing in strong on the omega’s face, and Youngjae was at war with himself.

 

All of this Yongguk knew- Himchan could read the tenseness in the slightly older man’s shoulders and in the frown lines around his eyes that the alpha was unsure of what to do with the pharmacist, and Himchan sighed internally. Of course he,the beta, would be the one to deal with it.As always.

 

He held out his hand to you-his good hand, since the other one was bandaged from shoulder to fingertip, and pulled you to your feet, “Come with me. You must be hungry.”

 

He gestured to the hallway and a gentle tilt of his head, you followed him into the hallway as he led you to a cozy kitchen a gestured for you to have a seat, “I’m Himchan,” you turned to see the man with bangs sifting through what looked like a small mountain of different pill canisters and medications, “and that’s Youngjae.”

 

Youngjae handed you 3 pills, “These should help,” you nodded, “Thank you-hey!!!These are from the pharmacy-MY pharmacy!!!” You recognized the medication’s label, and Youngjae snorted, “Nothing wrong with your vision, I see,” he shrunk a little as Himchan sent a sharp glance his way, and the tall boy returned with a refilled mug, “Thank you……?” “Oh-I’m Junhong.”

 

“Thank you Junhong,” you popped the pills and sipped the water slowly this time, and the others appeared in the kitchen light you had to swallow a gasp-

 

-The three men were tanner than the one standing in the kitchen but that wasn’t what made you almost choke on your water-

 

-one man watched you with wary eyes, but that’s all you could see from his face-everything else was covered haphazardly with bandages and gauze, especially at the corner of his mouth, where pink patches were starting to show up.

 

-a shorter man with muscles everywhere had a few bruises of his own, but he looked no worse for wear-

 

-It was the last man, the man with an air of dominance around him, that caused your heart to beat weirdly. The others made room for him to come into the kitchen first as he glanced at you with something unsavory in his eyes before he turned to address Himchan slowly, in an even deeper voice, “What do you need help with? You shouldn’t be moving around so much.”

 

Himchan lightly swatted at the other man’s arm, “First things first, you should introduce yourself-you’re making the lady feel uncomfortable.”

 

The man turned to face you slowly, and you could see that, underneath the unpleasantness in his eyes, there was a sort of sadness there, “Sorry. I’m Yongguk, and those two are Jongup and Daehyun.”

 

You shivered and nodded, “Hello everyone,” Junhong noticed you shiver and sat down in the chair directly next to yours, and you realized that he was sharing his body heat with you as you looked around, “Thanks for having me here, but……. aren’t you guys freezing?”

 

The only people that had clothes on-as in top and bottom- were you,Daehyun and Himchan. Everyone else was either walking around in sweatpants and socks, or just sweatpants. Jongup flexed, “We’re okay, I promise. We, um, we work out a lot, so we sweat a lot.” You felt a sudden blush appear on your cheeks and the most insane giggle threatened to burst from your throat as you realized that you were in a house with 6 mysteriously attractive men whom you’d never seen in town before after- _screams, fur flying through the air, teeth and fangs, sound fury_ -

 

-You set the mug down, “I was attacked today.” You realized that as your memories came back to you in splotches of color, and as you rubbed your temple Himchan switched out your water for hot chocolate, “Miss ______, you might be suffering from a mild case of PTSD.”

 

You looked up at him, suddenly feeling like you were drowning, “I-I followed you two up the mountain,” you waved a vague hand in Youngjae’s direction, “and then I found medicine, and then, they came-the first wolf, and then the second one, and then the last one,” you shivered as Junhong leaned and put an arm around you, your breath coming in short gasps, “-but, but I was saved, by 2 other wolves, a massive black one, and a splattered one,” you let out a shaky laugh, “And then I woke up here, and your eyes did something weird, or maybe MY eyes did something weird, I don’t know anymore,” you turned to look at Junhong, “Am I going crazy?”

 

Himchan came and knelt in front of you, reaching out gingerly to touch one of your knees to rub it roughly,dragging your slightly wild eyes to his face, “Hey-hey, breathe, in and out. No, you aren’t going crazy. You saw a lot today.”

 

You looked at him, really focusing on his sharp but kind features and then to his injuries, “You- you’re hurt. Some of you are _really_ hurt. Was it the wolves?Goodness.”

 

Daehyun turned away as Jongup shrugged, “Don’t worry about it. It happens.” Your head snapped up, “It happens….?! Should I warn the town?Are the townsfolk in danger? You guys need medical attention-”

 

“ _No_.”

 

You jumped as Yongguk cut you off, crossing his arms and standing up straight, “We’re fine. It was a random attack. We-our team of wolf dogs dealt with it,” his eyes flickered before he looked away again, and you shook your head, “………..”

 

Himchan stood up, “ Come, help me in the kitchen. You look like you could use something to eat after today.”

 

You shook your head, “Oh no, I really couldn’t-I feel like I’m intruding,” your voice grew small as that feeling of being a child came back, but it was Himchan who laughed, a bright sound that surprised you, “Well, that feeling will pass, seeing as you will be stuck with us for the next 2 days.”

 

You stood up, “What?!” Jongup shrugged, “There’s a storm coming in, noona- you got here right before the first sheet of hail came down. It's be dangerous for you to try and go home tonight,” indeed, even as the shortest man spoke you could hear the ice coming down hard on the roof of the house, in an unrelenting pattern, and Yongguk sighed, “Youngjae,Jongup, come with me-we’ve got to make sure the roof isn’t leaking anywhere.”

 

Youngjae nodded, and as the three of them took their leave you found that you couldn’t quite make eye contact with Daehyun, who was in the corner and watching you and the others with careful eyes, “………Thank you. For helping me and having me here.”

 

Junhong piped up, “Does this mean you won’t press charges against us for breaking into your store?”

 

The laughter erupted from your chest before you could stop it, as the man looked at you with hopeful eyes you rubbed at your face, “…….No, I guess not.I’ll take the money though-to replace the missing stock.”

 

He whooped and dashed up the stairs to let the others know of the good news, as Himchan pulled open the fridge and began rooting around for things, pushing around food as he pulled out different vegetables, wincing as he did so, and you stepped forward, “Tell me what to do. You need help, and I’m available.”

 

Himchan opened his mouth to protest, but you shook your head, “Please, I need…… _something_ to focus on right now.”

 

He regarded you for a moment, then smiled, “Sure. We’re having stew tonight, and I’ll need help cutting the vegetables,” you nodded, “Alright, no problem-if you have flour, I can make rolls,” you shrugged, “They might not be fluffy, but they’re decent,” Himchan nodded, “Thank you.”

 

Something warm and scratchy landed on your shoulders, and you turned to see that Daehyun had limped across the room and draped a well worn apron on your shoulders, “Here, noona, you’ll need this,” you nodded, as he shimmied into one carefully, and you moved to tie his apron for him as he adjusted his neck-

 

-Himchan held his breath as Daehyun’s heart rate picked up when you touched his lower back, but then evened out as you tied your own, “You should sit down, Himchan-ssi.”

 

Himchan leaned on you as you guided him back to a chair at the dining table, “Actually, you can just call me Himchan. I think we are close in age.”

 

You nodded, “But wait-you called me noona,” you turned to Daehyun, who was pulling out cutlery and a wooden board from a cabinet, and he nodded, “So I’m older than you, and Junhong, and Jongup and Youngjae-so you should be in school, right? Why haven’t I-”

 

Daehyun looked away, and you could’ve slapped yourself. _Of course, with **those** injuries, it would be awkward to go into town and have to answer questions_, “Fuck, I’m sorry. I’m stepping over my bounds here-I really want to sleep in front of that fireplace and not on the porch tonight.”

 

Daehyun’s shoulders shook, but this time it was to stifle a laugh, and Himchan chuckled, “Don’t worry, you’re doing fine.”

 

You stood up straight, “Alright, let’s do this.”

 

Himchan hummed as Daehyun pulled out a massive pot and set some water to boil, and as you started chopping carrots and potatoes with a determined look on your face he smiled to himself.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………................................................................................................................................................

 

 

 

Walls-check. No leakage there. His mattress was dry, so that meant the roof was fine too. Through the window, the hail had turned to ice, and the Alpha could no longer hear the wolf’s pitiful howls from next to the shed, although he could still hear its weak heartbeat.

 

 

Youngjae watched as Yongguk, in a rare display of emotion, leaned against one of the rafters in the attic and sighed deeply, “Hyung…..”

 

The alpha waved it off, “I’m fine, I just, I’m trying to adjust.”

 

The wolf within him was torn- there was a foreign(albeit harmless) woman two floors below him that needed comforting-it was the alpha’s first duty to protect-and there was an enemy three floors down and outside that needed to answer for its crimes against his pack. His family.

 

His heart rate was steady, as Yongguk chose to focus on the pack’s heartbeats as a collective, feeling that familiar heat seep through his chest and giving him the strength to stand up straight, adjusting his weight as he looked at his palms contemplatively.

 

When they first moved to this town, Yongguk had made a solemn vow that nothing and no one would come between him and his pack. After all the things they’d seen in their collective pasts, this was supposed to be their haven. Their safe space. Yongguk, Himchan, Daehyun, Youngjae, Jongup, and Junhong were supposed to live the rest of their lives here in peace, but recently…..

 

 

Recently….the alpha had been having second thoughts to that original plan.

 

 

Jongup sat at the top of the stairs to the attic,looking out at a random spot on the wall, “………..She smells kind.Friendly. Kinda like my favorite comic book or Himchan’s bed. I think she gives really nice hugs.”

 

Yongguk snorted and Youngjae laughed, reaching over to ruffle the youngest delta’s head, “Why don’t you go and ask her for one, then-to test your theory?”

 

Jongup blushed, then shot a shy glance in the leader’s direction, and Yongguk was surprised at his lack of confidence for a definitive answer.

 

It had been a few years since he’d last seen his sister, and while he occasionally went to the local grocery store for supplies, he’d rarely interact with any of the female cashiers or moms watching him with less than honorable intentions- he was a wolf after all, and could smell hormones that weren’t always violent, and that thought made him blush.

 

Youngjae was now waving a hand in front of his face, “Hyung, are you alright? You sort of…..faded out there for a moment.”

 

Yongguk touched Youngjae’s shoulder, feeling a wave of affection for the younger man, “I’m fine, it’s fine Jongup-ah, just, don’t be creepy.”

 

Jongup nodded eagerly and headed back down the steps as Youngjae looked at his hyung again, “……….”

 

Yongguk allowed himself a small smile as he headed down the stairs, where Junhong met Jongup on the landing to convey some good news, as his heart rate was up and he was happy, “I’ll allow it because this won’t last long-”

 

The wafting scent of barley, onions, and meat reached everyone’s noses at the same time, and Yongguk’s stomach rumbled the loudest, causing him to blush fiercely as the others grinned knowingly at him, “We’ve shifted a lot recently-hopefully, we can relax for a bit now.”

 

Coming down the stairs, the others trailing respectfully behind him, Yongguk was greeted with a heart-warming sight-

 

-a large stew cauldron was boiling away on the stove, with large chunks of beef, celery, and potatoes floating around in plain view on the top in sepia colored water-

 

-Himchan was sipping coffee from a mug in a corner, face bright and happy as he made eye contact with Yongguk before nodding his head ever so slightly in Daehyun’s direction-

 

-The oldest delta and the pharmacist were standing at the counter, both elbow deep in flour and Yongguk’s ears perked up at a sound that he felt like he hadn’t heard in forever, that made his heart rate flare up again.

 

It was the sound of Daehyun’s laughter. His real one, where it bubbled up from his chest and spilled out like a kettle on a stove. Granted, it still sounded like it hurt to laugh, but it was a familiar sound, nonetheless, and judging by Youngjae’s sharp intake of breath behind him, Yongguk knew the others heard it too.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………...............................................................................................................................................

 

You were laughing and trying to direct Daehyun on how to make the rolls, “No no, you have to flatten your flour out or else your lump will turn into something else!!! _Those look like a pair of breasts_!!!”

 

You were talking the younger man step by step on how to make basic biscuits and rolls, pouring in lukewarm water by quarter cup measurements, adding in yeast and a little bit of salt(you sighed as Daehyun, a slight blaze in his eyes, added in maybe a little bit more salt than necessary, but you let him have his little joy) until the flour looked like paste.

 

Kneading the gray mixture in a bowl until it came together, you set the flour to rise for a little bit as you opened the pot to check on the stew, “Hmm, this smells _divine_ , Himchan,” the man at the table hobbled over to look at it himself, “Of course- it’s a secret recipe I’ve known for years,” it was true-Himchan had asked both you and Daehyun to cover your eyes as he added some spices to the water at first, and although your curiosity was great, your hunger was greater, and so you didn’t dare peek.

 

When the flour was ready, you pulled it off in large, tangerine sized chunks as Himchan sat back down, and held out some to Daehyun, who took it gingerly, as though you were handing him a ticking bomb, “Haha, it won’t hurt you, Daehyun. Come- first, we must roll it out so that it isn’t so lumpy-small air bubbles are okay, the oven will get rid of those- and we can make some shapes and stuff.”

 

The two of you made basic circular rolls at first, and then Daehyun had tried his hand at making various things around the kitchen, in which you had to guess them, “A ladle!!No no, hmm, a spoon? An ice cream scoop?”

 

The younger man’s shoulders shook again, which was a sign he was enjoying himself as his mask covered his mouth and jaw completely, and you sighed as Himchan laughed from his chair, “That one was completely off the mark, ______- it was the salt shaker.”

 

From out of nowhere, Junhong towered over you as he pointed, “Those look like grapes, hyung!!!” you jumped as Jongup came around to your other side, “Hmm, more like a dinosaur head.”

 

Youngjae commented drily as he looked at the stew instead, “Knowing Daehyun’s humor, it’s probably a dick or balls- _ouch_!!!” Himchan clucked as Daehyun turned around and flung the end of a celery stalk at the back of his head, causing Youngjae to jump back and glare at Daehyun, “Watch it-we have a lady present.”

 

You laughed as Youngjae blushed, “Well, to keep it scientific- it does look like something of the penile variety,” you laughed as Daehyun looked betrayed and Youngjae stuck out his tongue at him, and as Junhong held open the oven for you to start sliding your trays of (thankfully normal) rolls inside Yongguk rumbled out, “…….But why did you make so many rolls?”

 

You flinched, as you didn’t think you could ever get used to that voice, “U-um, we sort of went overboard with measuring the flour out, and I didn’t want to waste the batter so I just……..made more….rolls. I’m sorry,” your voice was getting higher and higher in nervousness, and so this last apology came out in a squeak, as you didn’t know if Yongguk would be mad at you or not, and you couldn’t read him at all-it was throwing you off.

 

Yongguk raised a hand, “No, it’s fine, they look, um delicious. I’m sure we will eat them all,” he smiled lightly at you, and you hesitantly smiled back. Himchan, who was watching all of this, coughed lightly, getting Yongguk’s attention, “Help me set the table, please.”

 

Yongguk took that opportunity like a lifeline and went to grab plates as you were explaining to Daehyun, “Now all we have to do is wait until the tops and sides of each roll is brown, and then we’ll know they’re done-it’ll take about 25 minutes or so.”

 

Junhong piped up, “Noona, do you like video games?”

 

You shrugged, “Sure, I haven’t played any in a while though- _eep_!!” Junhong didn’t quite wait for the end of your sentence before he grabbed your hand and pulled you in the direction of the living room, “Okay~we can play some games until your awesome rolls are ready!!!”

 

Youngjae chased after you both, “Don’t turn on the television during a storm you idiot- _we could lose a fuse_!!!” and Jongup and Daehyun followed him out as well, a wave of fondness for their omega so strong it made Himchan smile, “They’re adjusting to her well, and she’s not a threat, so just take it easy,” he murmured to Yongguk, who had just finish setting the glasses on the table.

 

Yongguk sighed, “I’m working on it, trust me.”

 

….……………………………………………………………………………………………….............................................................................................................................................

 

A few rounds of Monopoly, Chinese Checkers, and poker later, Himchan poked his head into the living room to say that the food was ready, “Master baker, care to check on the rolls?”

 

Daehyun pulled you to your feet up from the rug, were a smug Youngjae was collecting his fake money from a sighing Jongup, “You two couldn’t lie to save your own lives,” and you laughed as Daehyun handed you a pair of Angry Bird oven mitts, “I can’t wait to eat these-I am hungry!!!”

 

Jongup squatted to look through the oven glass again, “But they’re too pretty to eat,” Himchan laughed as Jongup’s stomach growled, “You’ll get over it quickly.”

 

Yongguk turned off the stew and manhandled the pot to the center of the table, where everyone was practically drooling over the marvelous scents that the bread and the stew combined to make- Daehyun practically floated from the hallway to the table and sat down as Junhong pulled out a chair for you before sitting down next to you, “Here we are, noona.”

 

Youngjae began ladling out steamy goodness into bowls as Daehyun placed one down in front of you and Himchan first before helping himself, and Yongguk wielded a spatula as he deftly slid the rolls off into a wicker basket lined with grease paper before carrying it to the table, “These really look nice,_______.”

 

You ducked your head shyly, “Thanks for having me here, guys.” Himchan raised his mug of coffee to you in a small salute as everyone else looked at Yongguk, who raised his fork and smiled, “Let’s eat.”

 

Everyone else around you dug in with gusto, but you noticed that Daehyun was sneaking little glances at you before quickly looking down at his bowl, and finally, he slipped his mask off from his face and tucked it in quietly into his pocket before picking up his fork and beginning to eat, wincing as the hot stew stung at the corners of his mouth, where a major cut was still healing-

 

-as soon as you took the first bite of stew, your eyes practically rolled to the back of your head as you groaned, “Himchan, this is the bee’s knees right here-it’s amazing!!!” Himchan looked a bit proud of himself as Jongup piped in, “This hyung here is brilliant when it comes to cooking!!”

 

You smiled and turned to face Junhong, who was inhaling the stew quickly, and you were surprised, “Be careful-you’ll burn yourself!!”

 

Junhong quickly swallowed his food, and although the steam was coming from his mouth he gave you the thumbs up, and Youngjae translated for you, “He won’t stop because it’s all so delicious, noona,” the tall boy nodded happily and bit down on a roll, eating half of it in seconds while Jongup was working on his second bowl, “Hyung, you have to eat one of these rolls!!!”

 

Himchan laughed, “I’ve had 5 already-they’re good!!!” he touched Yongguk’s arm lightly, “And you were worried that there would be leftovers……”

 

The beta turned his attention to the oldest delta, who was now enjoying his food(and Himchan noted that he was sneaking little glances towards the pharmacist to see if she had noticed his scars, but she didn’t comment on them) and taking care not to aggravate any of his wounds.

 

Yongguk was on his second bowl too, and the wolf within him was purring in agreement of all the hot food hitting his stomach and soothing his forced metabolism-shifting did burn through a lot of energy, and this was just what the Alpha needed after the past couple of days that the pack had-

 

-as soon as your bowl was empty, Junhong hovered over your head with another refilled ladle, ready to pour into your bowl, “Oh, no I couldn’t possibly-” he cut you off, “Eat up!!!”

 

Laughing, you nodded in thanks as Jongup refilled your glass of juice, and as you ate away Yongguk regarded you kindly, noticing that Jongup and Junhong seemed to gravitate towards you, leaning against you sometimes and touching your arm lightly to ask if you needed anything, “No no, I’m fine, thank you.”

 

-a yelp caused you to drop your spoon, clinking against your plate as everyone turned to face Daehyun, who was quickly pressing a napkin to one of his cheeks as the telltale signs of a spoon with food spilled across the table, “I bith dowth too hardth(I bit down too hard),” and you sighed, “Here, let me see-”

 

“ _No_!!!”Daehyun pushed you away, with fear in his eyes as he quickly stood up from the table and took a step back, and you were confused, but Himchan knew it for what it was-he could smell the delta’s shame in revealing his injured face to his first potentially female friend.

 

Everyone else had stopped eating, and Junhong stood up slowly, “Hyung….”

 

“I’th finth(I’m fine),” Daehyun was stubborn, but you stood up as well and went to him-everyone else but you tensed up, because Daehyun’s heart rate picked up as you approached him- but all you did was rest a caring hand on his upper arm, “Look, I am a licensed pharmacist. I know how to do first aid. Here, lemme have a look, okay?”

 

Yongguk was surprised at what happened next-

 

-a small whimper left Daehyun’s throat, so small that only the wolves could hear it, but it was there, and he nodded meekly in a sign of unmistakable submission to someone that wasn’t his alpha, and as you led him to stand at the counter he sagged against the corner, relaxing his legs against the lower cabinets as he watched your eyes carefully before pulling away his hand from his face, setting the napkin on the counter-

 

\- you let out a shaky breath as your eyes were able to see Daehyun’s full face for the first time.

 

He was a very handsome man, but it was clear that he was suffering from a myriad of injuries that had damaged his self esteem in many ways. Cuts and bruises peppered the tan skin, but that wasn’t what made you hurt for him-

 

-what made you ache in your chest was a particularly long gash on the lower part of Daehyun’s face. It was black and blue in all of the spots where the nerves were exposed, and leaking pus in some places where he was trying to eat his food. That was his secret, the one that he was hiding from you, the one that was a direct insult to his pride and the one that he was most ashamed of. “Oh, my poor dear,” you murmured out, and he winced and almost folded in on himself as you leaned in to look at it closely, almost fascinated by the way it permeated his face and left its mark.

 

You noticed the change in behavior from the man standing before you. He was on the defensive sure, but the way he licked his lips and focused on your every facial tick, there was something almost…..animal-like about it.Something almost _feral_ about it.

 

What you didn’t know what that Daehyun was sensitive to the pheromones in the air, and he was tense as the ones around you were changing. It was bothering him that he couldn’t exactly read what they meant, and also the fact that you were in your personal space and staring at him wasn’t helping the situation, but you couldn’t help that.

 

You tucked your hair behind your ears as you shook away less professional thoughts of _howdidthishappen_ and _whyhaven’tIeverseenthemaroundintownbefore_ and _ohmygodwillidiehere_ and began to examine it closely, offering a smile to Daehyun, who had held his own breath and was watching your every move, “I have seen worse, my friend, don’t worry, and the good news is that this is healing nicely,” you paused for effect, “The bad news, well…………you can’t eat ice cream for a while.”

 

Daehyun shuddered out a laugh as you washed your hands in the sink before turning back to his face, “Can I touch your face?” he exhaled, and nodded shyly at you as you nodded back and cupped his face slowly, feeling his heat travel all the way up to your elbow as you lightly poked at his injured cheek with your other hand, noticing that although the wounds were all fresh, they were healing quickly and with minimal damage to the surrounding areas, “This is what was bothering you,” you poked one spot in particular, and Daehyun jumped, actually bouncing off the counter top as you could feel his jaw clench in your hand, “Sorry!!Sorry!!!This is your main mandible nerve-it’s been exposed, so every time you chew something of extreme temperature-such as soup, or icecream-it will act up. Oh!!!And also things with too much sugar will irritate the nerve.”

 

You turned to look at the table in general, “Your wolves stole a bunch of first aid kits-please go and find me one,” before you even finished Jongup was up and out of the kitchen, heading up the stairs as the others watched you work, “There’s a bit of disinfection that needs to happen,” you could see tiny patches of stubble coming in, and also threads of gauze that were swimming around in the major part of the gash, “you did a good job cleaning it on your own, but there’s still some threads leftover from the cotton in your face-if they aren’t pulled out, they won’t allow the wound to close properly,” you explained softly as Daehyun nodded, his face still in your hand as Junhong spoke up, “Hyung, are you-are you actually going to _sleep_?”

 

You stopped staring at his cheek long enough to look up at his eyes in surprise, as it was true-Daehyun’s eyes were looking towards your own, but they were unfocused, as his breath on your hand was slowing down, his chest rising and falling slowly as he actually rubbed his uninjured cheek against your hand before straightening up quickly- “Wha-what?!”

 

You laughed as he blushed, and as Jongup returned you led Daehyun to the table, “Look, let’s finish eating here, and then I’ll take a look at all injured parties. It’s the least I can do, since I am staying here and stuff.”

 

Junhong whooped while Jongup smiled, “Then I should go first please, since I am not too bad off,” but Daehyun mumbled, “I clearly need the most help here, so it should be me first.”

 

Himchan raised a hand to quell the beginnings of an argument, “Whomever finishes their chores first will be examined by the noona first, alright?” That settled it, and as everyone got back to eating, Himchan noticed Yongguk’s eyes flicker to you before looking at him meaningfully. _We need to talk about this, but later_.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………..................................................................................................................................................

 

45 minutes later, everyone was settled in the living room. You and Jongup were seated on the couch, with Junhong sitting at your knee on the carpet below and Youngjae sitting on a cushion nearby, a first aid kit laid out in front of him and instruments laid out neatly in front of him.

 

Himchan sat in his armchair in the corner, watching everyone else, with Yongguk leaning against the chair and adjusting his shirt(after everyone finished eating, the alpha made everyone go upstairs and put on a shirt, and you silently thanked him for it).

 

Daehyun sat on the seat directly behind Jongup-the younger man was leaning against his hyung as you poked around at his bicep, “This one’s fine, doesn’t need any stitches…that’s fine, this one is also fine…….hmmm…..this one’s a little deep, Youngjae-tourniquet please.”

 

Without a word, Youngjae handed you the spongy elastic band, and Jongup held out his arm to you as you quickly bound his muscle with the band, “ Tweezers and balm spray, please.”

 

Once those were in either hand, you leaned forward and poked around at the cut, spraying it with the cooling cream and then tweezing out any last remnants of dirt before reaching down and covering it with a band-aid, “That one will heal nicely, just hold off on any of your hardcore workouts.”

 

Jongup was surprised as you removed the band from around his arm, “Hardcore workouts?” you nodded, “Sure. You must be into jujitsu or something, right? Where did all of those muscles come from? Are you trying out for the Olympics or something?” Youngjae laughed as Jongup shrugged shyly, “Nothing like that, noona…..I just run a lot. That’s all. I think.”

 

You patted his arm as he bowed to you in thanks-

 

-and then Jongup leaned forward and hugged you quickly, both arms around your back and sighing contently into your hair before pulling away, “Sorry…….you smell really nice by the way,” you laughed as Jongup practically ran away to the other side of the room to stand behind Himchan’s chair, and Daehyun scooted forward, “Don’t mind him, I’m ready.”

 

He eagerly rested his face in your hand again as Youngjae muttered, “Stop looking like a spoiled puppy-it’s creepy,” and as Daehyun kicked out with his good foot Junhong laughed. You smiled as Daehyun mumbled, “I can’t help it if her hand feels really soft,” as you prepared the cleaning swab for the gash on his jaw, feeling his Adam apple go flush against your hand as you swiped his cheek carefully, making sure to pay special attention to the areas were the stubble was coming in, “Daehyun, if you shave be very careful not to aggravate the bruised areas-if it’s itching, that’s a good sign-don’t scratch it.”

 

You began to rub the balm all around the bruised areas of his face, taking care that you didn’t poke his cheek too much as you went.Daehyun hummed as his eyes closed completely, enthralled by your feathery touches upon him, and Junhong lightly poked his hyung’s leg, “Daehyunnie hyung, you’re drifting off again.”

 

You smiled as you finished cleaning up his face-Youngjae had to go and open another first aid kit, because you finished the first balm spray and needed another, “Come now, let’s look at that ankle.”

 

Daehyun hissed as you poked around at his ankle and frowned, “It’s severely sprained, but nothing’s broken. It was rolled recently, and you have been walking lately, so no more of that-at least, for the next week or so,” his ankle was the size of an apple, and it was clear from the strain that he was moving around too much on it, so you made a small incision on the top of the worst swell and checked beneath the skin to see if it was infected at all, “Nope, just a badly bruised ankle. I don’t think you need x-rays, just plenty of rest and icing,” you sighed, “I really wish I had some stronger medication with me-I know you must be in a lot of pain.”

 

In spite of his gritted teeth, Daehyun smiled, a real genuine smile at you as he leaned forward to rest his forehead against your shoulder, “No no, it’s getting better, I promise-thank you. Thank you so much.”

 

Youngjae made a fake vomiting sound, but the stutter in his own heart beat and the relief heard in his throat gave away his real feelings, and as you wrapped up the ankle tightly Himchan cleared his throat, “Enough about the kids-it’s my turn.”

 

You turned to look at Himchan-then looked away quickly as the man was in the midst of pulling off his shirt, revealing a toned back, “Oh-sorry!!!”

 

You blushed as Junhong snorted, “But noona, it doesn’t bother us, don’t worry,” you shut your eyes quickly, waving a hand in the air(Daehyun smiled as he dodged your hand narrowly), “But, but still-I feel like I’m invading your privacy-”

 

“You’re cute.”

 

Everyone froze as from the side Yongguk coughed awkwardly, “Um, what I meant to say is that you’re……..um, _acting_ cute.” He trailed off, and looked to the floor as Himchan finally shrugged out of his shirt, “Thanks to no help from _anyone_ ,” he looked at you expectantly, “What can you do for my chest?”

 

You gasped as your embarrassment quickly gave way to concern, as Himchan’s upper body was bound tightly with old fashioned bandages and pinned around his left shoulder, where the bandages continued on a new path to the end of his arm, “Whoa……..I don’t think you need me- that you might have to take to an actual hospital-”

 

Himchan shook his head once, firmly, “No-I trust your judgement, and it isn’t as bad as it looks,” he said as an after thought, as he came over to you, with Daehyun respectably scooting backwards in the sofa so that his hyung could sit down.

 

Yongguk straightened up-it was your diagnosis of Himchan that he was most eager to hear, as he hadn’t even seen his wounds with his own eyes yet, and you exhaled, “Alright, but I’m going to have to take these off-you’re leaking through them.”

 

Indeed, even as you undid the knot at the shoulder and unclipped a safety pin here and there, you could see a major wound starting to reveal itself on Himchan’s abdomen, the blood soaking though each layer of wrapping like a crimson puddle as the man leaned backwards, resting easily on Daehyun’s arm as you undid the wrap on his arm first before dealing with his stomach-

 

-you closed your eyes tightly before opening them again, to see that his left arm was black and blue in spots all over, some clear teeth prints on his forearm, and a lump of what looked like a muscle spasm towards his rotary cuff stood out proudly, “ _Fucking christ_ ,” Himchan snorted through his pain as Junhong gasped- clearly, it was also his first time seeing his hyung’s wounds as well, and then you lowered your eyes to his stomach.

 

Three swipes of what could have only been described as a bear attack went across Himchan’s stomach diagonally, ending at just beneath his rib cage and stopping above his hip bone. The middle gash was the worst-as you watched, suddenly feeling faint, it oozed dark brown blood, a sign that at least one internal organ was nicked in passing and that it was fighting to heal itself.

 

You took some breaths, “Alright. Alright alright alright.I’m going to speak frankly. First things first, _what the actual fuck_. Secondly, everything is only superficial. I think one of your intestines was cut-” Junhong shuddered, and Jongup put a hand on his shoulder in comfort, “-but it’s nothing too severe. Are your ribs hurting?”

 

Himchan started to shake his head no, but one look from Yongguk and he sighed, nodding, “But only when I do certain things,” you cut him off, “Yeah-fuck that. No moving unless you absolutely have to, at least for a day. When you shower, use water as cold as you can take it. No bending over at the waist, no squatting at the knee, no none of that-no more bear hunting, or wild boar chasing, or any of that shit,” Youngjae smiled in spite of the worry gnawing away at his stomach, “I love your grammar, noona.”

 

You pulled on some latex gloves, “Are you allergic to these? No? Okay then,” you ran fingers lightly against his sides, “Ribs are all there, intact, but bruised-especially on the left side-did the bear pick you up and toss you or something?” Himchan nodded, not bothering to correct your ‘bear’ to ‘large wolf’, “I see. And then you tried to escape using your non-dominant hand,losing a lot of blood in the proccess,” you gestured to his left hand, “And barely got away before it bit you.”

 

You rubbed your sweaty forehead with the back of your forearm, “Look, I know you guys are worried about hospital bills and such, but I’ll happily negotiate something with the doctor. The medicine you have here is good, but not good enough for the pain you have. You need profesional help-REAL professional help, not just me. I mean, I am really surprised at how you are still upright and walking around. Clearly, between losing close to 3 pints of blood, the possibility of internal bleeding…… this is a lot, and I don’t think I’m the one to-”

 

Himchan leaned forward and took your gloved hand in his large,warm one, looking at you so earnestly it killed all words leaving your lips, “ _I_ trust you. We’ve been through worse. Trust in yourself as much as I trust you-as much as _we_ trust you.Besides, there's not an ambulance in the world that can navigate the drive up the snowy mountain to our house,” Junhong nodded, as Himchan leaned backwards again, letting go of your hand, and you sighed, “………Fine. You’ll need stitches. I have to give them to you while you’re sober, the old fashioned way- no drinking until it’s over.Youngjae-”

 

As if by magic, Youngjae produced a set of sewing needles and some dark colored thread, and you sighed, “Okay then, let’s do this.”

 

Yongguk noted the increase in your heart rate before the others did, he watched you thread a few needles carefully and spray them with disinfectant before exhaling shakily through your nose, your hands trembling as you laid the strings out carefully, mentally planning how you would run the stitching pattern across the beta’s stomach, and the words came out of his mouth without him even realizing this, “You’ll do well.”

 

You almost dropped the balm as from behind you Yongguk spoke, and you turned to look at him. The eldest man of the house nodded to you once, his eyes kind, and you breathed, “Okay. Thank you.”

 

You leaned in and looked up at Himchan, “I’m sorry,” and you plunged the first needle in, remembering your practicum from college, _Make the first stab of your needle the truest one you can manage. Everything else will fall into place._

 

Himchan flinched and held onto Jongup’s hand as you stabbed though his toned flesh the best you could, your bottom lip trembling as you cross stitched and zigzagged neatly, trying to sew against the muscle as Junhong closed his eyes tightly.

 

Although Himchan was putting on a brave face for everyone, his pack could smell the air, hear his nervous/pained heartbeat, and the occasional shuddering breath he took whenever you got to close to a sensitive spot, but after a while, you were finished.

 

Instead of three gaping wounds, there were now two sprayed off and bandaged wounds with one thick row of stitches running diagonally against the pale skin for the biggest wound.

 

You rinsed everything on his abdomen with balm spray and then sealed them away with a tube of ointment from another kit, and then, after cleaning the bruise and massaging the muscle spasm area the best you could, bandaging everything up with new linen, you straightened up and stretched, “Finished.”

 

Himchan wiggled his newly bandaged left hand’s fingers and smiled at you, “I feel better already. Thank you.”

 

You stood up, and looked down at your gloved hands, which now were stained with blood from the stitching, and that weak feeling came over you again, “……..I need a bathroom. _Please_.”

 

Junhong stood up and took you by the elbow, “C’mon noona, you don’t look so good.”

 

The lanky man led you away from the living room and to the bathroom, where you pushed past him and threw up part of your dinner, just getting to the toilet in time so that nothing splashed over the porcelain, and Junhong wrung his hands in worry as you sank to the floor, “Noona…….what can I do?”

 

You couldn’t answer him yet-the bile came back with a vengeance, and round two was clawing its way up your throat, and you held on to both sides of the toilet as you emptied your stomach into the toilet before flushing, “Please…..give me some space.”

 

Junhong opened his mouth, but then thought better of it, and he quietly retreated from the bathroom as you swiped a forearm across your mouth and sat on the floor of the bathroom, lost in your own thoughts for a while.

 

….………………………………………………………………………………………………..................................................................................................................................................

 

When Junhong got back to the living room, he didn’t need to say anything-the others’ expressions let him know that they heard the retching just as clearly as if she was in the room with them, and that your heart beat was fluttering from stress. Himchan sighed, “I’ll hazard a guess and say that I’m the first person that she’s ever had to give serious first aid to.”

 

Yongguk rubbed his temple as his acute hearing picked up the sounds of the faucet running, and a distinct, minty smell trailing down the hallway, “……………”

 

Junhong had crawled into Youngjae’s lap unashamedly-the delta didn’t even mind, as he began to run his fingers tenderly through the omega’s scalp, breathing in deeply as Junhong tried to relax against him, “…….What can we do for noona?” Daehyun rubbed his eyes as Jongup looked to the alpha for guidance, and after a while Yongguk left the room.

 

….…………………………………………………………………………………………….......................................................................................................................................................

You checked to make sure the area around the toilet was clean and all signs of sickness were erased before sighing,closing the mouthwash bottle you found on a shelf and opening the bathroom door to walk out-

 

-only to jump back a step as there stood Yongguk, a hand raised as though he was about to knock, “………….”

 

He looked at you, but you ducked your head, “Um, I’m sorry-”

 

A hand landed on your shoulder, and you looked up to see Yongguk looking at you with understanding as he said softly, “Stop apologizing. You have done _nothing_ wrong. Follow me-let’s get you cleaned up.”

 

Without waiting on your actual response, he headed up the staircase and waited for you to come along as the two of you went to the next level of the house, where there were some bedrooms, and Yongguk stopped to enter one, “Here. Himchan has the best bathroom in the house,” stepping out quickly, the man returned with a towel,washcloth,small boy shorts, terry pajama bottoms and a large t-shirt, “Take all the time you need. I’ll be right here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

 

Perhaps it was his comforting rumble, or the confident finality in which he said those words, but you felt like crying a little bit in gratitude. Your throat choked up, you nodded once, curtly as Yongguk looked at you with understanding before a small smile graced his face, this one reaching his eyes, “If you need hot water, jiggle the pipe first before turning on the hose-the ice water will come out first if you don’t.”

 

You let out a watery chuckle and nodded again before stepping into the bathroom, and true to his word Yongguk stood outside the door to Himchan’s room and leaned against the wall, breathing slowly until about half an hour later, when steam preceded your exit as you patted at your face and hair, looking like you had a good scrub all over, smelling like Himchan’s lavender soap as you held your soiled clothes and latex gloves, “Um, where can I put these?”

 

Yongguk nodded as he took them from you, “……….I’ll deal with them. How are you feeling?” You shrugged, “I think I’m okay- _I will be okay_. It’s a lot, but I’ll be okay, thank you.”

 

Yongguk looked at you but didn’t comment, which you were grateful for, and as you looked back at Himchan’s room Yongguk spoke up, “How about you take this room? He changed the sheets this morning,” you started to protest, but Yongguk shut that down with a gentle shake of the head, “You are our guest, and he very rarely sleeps in here, so please,” you half spoke to Yongguk, half to yourself as you went to touch the mattress, “Only if you’re _absolutely sure_ I’m not taking anything from anyone,” you sat down on the bed and sighed as Yongguk nodded his approval before padding down the hallway away from you, “I’ll go put these in the laundry, I will return in a moment.”

 

You fell back on the bed and listened to his feet carry him away from you, and as soon as you couldn’t hear him any more you brought your feet up onto the bed taking a deep whiff of the blanket beneath you-it was a combination of soap, a man’s cologne, and strangely enough spring flowers, and you found yourself comforted by the smell.

 

_This is not how I wanted my day to go. There’s so much more I don’t know, and need to know. Who are these guys? Why do they feel so strange, and yet…..so familiar at the same time? If we are snowed in, and get attacked again, what will we do? How will we reach the outside world?Hmm, this pillow smells nice……_

Yongguk was on his way back up the stairs to Himchan’s room when a telltale sound of a quiet ‘mm’ in a throat and a relaxed heart beat caused him to smile, _She finally went to sleep._

 

Yongguk turned around and padded down the stairs, to where the others were still in the living room. He knew the others also knew that she was sleeping, and from the looks of it, she was out for the rest of the night.

 

Junhong stood up as Yongguk raised a hand, “You can see her in a moment,she needs some space right now.”Daehyun ran a hand against his jaw thoughtfully, the same spot were you touched him earlier, “If she was a wolf or even another kind of animal shifter…….she would be welcome here. With us.”

 

Himchan spoke slowly, gauging the alpha’s reaction as he did, “She’s completely human, and of course she is welcome. Not part of the pack, but definitely a friend.”

 

Youngjae was still on the floor, organizing the rest of the medical supplies into neat stacks so that Jongup could slide them into labelled plastic containers, “If noona hadn’t been so nosey and followed us home, she wouldn’t have been attacked and stuck with us like this.”

 

Daehyun stuck out his chin, “If that ‘noona’ didn’t follow you home, you would’ve been hurt- 3 wolves attacked, not 2, and you would probably ended up looking like me afterwards,” the oldest delta didn’t sound bitter, just tired, and Youngjae wisely shut his mouth and focused back at his task while Junhong looked at war with himself, “I’ve never been like this before. I want to protect her and keep her near, but if we are attacked again, then it would be safer if she is as far away from us as possible….”

 

Jongup shook his head, “It’s a lot for noona-not to mention the fact that she doesn’t know what we really are. She thinks we’re Iditarod breeders or Olympic-level hunters.”

 

As a small wave of laughter passed through the room, Junhong sighed, “Her face when she saw everyone’s blood on her hands…….she doesn’t know our world, and we don’t know hers…..”

 

Himchan sighed, “We’re overthinking all of this-it’s not like ______ will live with us. When the storm passes, she’ll go back into town like everything’s normal. We just have a friend. A decent human being who just happens to be the owner of our local pharmacy, that’s all.”

 

Yongguk closed his eyes as he thought about all that transpired over the past few days, and hummed to himself, “……..Alright. We can call her, a ‘friend’. Don’t ‘friends’ normally tell each other their deepest secrets…..?”

 

A hush fell over the room as everyone wondered what your reaction would be if you ever found out about their true nature, and Youngjae looked down at his hands, thinking about the wolf he had killed earlier, and how you would react if you found out that the wolf you had seen so many times before was a trained killer.

 

Yongguk spoke up, “She is a guest and a close acquaintance for now. Calling her a friend would be premature at this point,” Himchan smiled, “But the door is still open on the friendship bit, correct?” Yongguk shook his head, but returned a ghost of a smile to his beta, “Alright, the chance is still there-”

 

A pitiful howl echoed though the living room, and Yongguk’s head snapped back into focus as Jongup said,very plainly, “I almost forgot about him-good to know that he’s still alive. I have some things I’d like to get off my chest.”

 

Junhong paused for all of 5 seconds, playing with the hem of his shirt before stripping down to nothing, “......... _I hate him_. I hate what the other wolves have done to my hyungs, terrorized my new noona,” he got down to his knees with a venom that his hyungs had never heard before, “but I _especially_ hate him because _he’s still alive_.”

 

Junhong shifted into his wolf as Youngjae did the same, the delta’s last muttered words before he lost his human vocal capacity were, “I’ve got some words for him too-save some for me Junhong.”

 

Daehyun immediately hobbled over to the doorjamb of the living room, blocking the exit with his body, “Listen to me. We are angry, but we are sinking to our enemy’s level.We aren’t barbarians. We are letting them get to us,” he looked over at his Alpha for guidance, but was surprised to see-

 

-that Yongguk was literally, for the first time since he’d met him, fighting _against_ his shift. The man was breathing hard while his back shifted between human shoulder blades and the powerful back muscles of his wolf, and fur was appearing and disappearing in different places as everyone looked at him in different levels of amazement/concern.

 

Yongguk growled/spat out in a voice that wasn’t quite human nor wolf, but a gravelly mixture of both, “ _I don’t care about philosophy or morals right now-the point is that he will pay by the end of tonight.His death will be a message to our future enemies._ ”

 

His fur erupted all over as he finally gave way to his wolf, and Himchan snorted as he stood up as well, stretching his neck muscles as he lightly kicked Youngjae out of the way to lay a hand on Daehyun’s shoulder, “Well, as long as we’re all in agreement, let’s get this show on the road.”

 

Junhong pushed past Daehyun with such eagerness that Daehyun stumbled away and was steadied by Jongup, as Youngjae was right behind the omega and bounding for the front door, pushing it so hard that it bounced on its hinges-

 

-Yongguk’s sleek form breezed past the two other wolves, as the excitement of the hunt, the _thrill_ of the chase, overtook his base desires and spurred him on, head held high even as the hail fell all around them and visibility was getting dimmer and dimmer by the minute.

 

Himchan closed the door and turned to face the other two deltas, “Let’s go through the backdoor-we’re shifters, but we aren’t immune to that wind. I like being able to feel my fingers,” the beta led the way around the staircase and down a hallway leading to the backyard as over the wind, he could hear Junhong’s bark and Youngjae’s gleeful reply back.

 

Bracing themselves for the wind, Jongup led the way into the backyard, where his eyes barely had time to adjust to the evening light before Junhong bounded up to him and circled his knees once before growling and turning his head in the direction of the shed.

 

Deliberately dragging his heels to make a clearer path for his hyungs following behind him, Jongup closed the short gap between the house and the shed and pulled the rickety oak door open, reaching for the string for the light bulb above his head somewhere as an onyx colored blur passed him in a show of speed-

 

-in the dark, there was a yip and a thud, and the sound of snarling, and as the light flickered on Himchan shook his head at the wolf, who had freed itself of the scarf but now found itself pinned beneath Yongguk’s jaw, “I wouldn’t make things worse if I were you. He’s _not_ in a good mood.”

 

Daehyun closed the door behind them, sealing the 7 beings in the shed. It was no bigger than their living room, used mostly for storing garden tools and large cold cuts of meat for the winter, but it would serve them well tonight-the woman sleeping upstairs couldn’t hear anything of what would happen later…..

 

The wind whistled and hit the shabby roof, rattling the tools hanging near his head, but Himchan leaned against Jongup, tuning all outside factors out as he took a deep breath, inhaling and analyzing carefully before he opened his eyes, bright as ever, “…………I’m not stupid.Come now, shift into your human self, and we’ll talk.”

 

The battered wolf had his pride, Himchan could respect that, but Youngjae didn’t-the tawny delta lunged forward with a feint, threatening bark before Daehyun bent down and pulled on some of his rear fur roughly, “ _Not yet_.”

 

The oldest delta could sense the bloodlust rising in Youngjae-Yongguk was keeping his own in check as he could feel the racing, beating pulse of the enemy beneath his paw, and Himchan finally let his displeasure show after a moment passed, “Okay, fine.Youngjae, go for it-take a toe.”

 

Yongguk raised up as the wolf scurried up and tried to get away-

 

-but in the next second, Youngjae was all over him, and although his first lunge missed a paw, his claws didn’t miss the injury from the splinter-

 

-the wolf howled in pain as Youngjae, purely out of spite, dug his claws into the soft underbelly of his enemy before two snaps form the beta had Youngjae backing off, “Next time, he won’t miss.”

 

The wolf growled, but as everyone watched, he began to switch forms until he was nothing more than a shivering man, not that much older than Daehyun, with blonde hair and shifty eyes.

 

He crouched on the floor in an ever ready battle position, his eyes jumping from each man in the room as Junhong backed off near Jongup’s legs, giving him a bit of space as he also looked for any windows he could jump through-

 

-Himchan allowed himself a little smirk as the man before them realized that there was no escape for him but death, but his smirk disappeared quickly as the man barked out a laugh, his voice grating and unforgiving, “You clearly aren’t the alpha here. _None of you are_. If you were, I wouldn’t be breathing still.”

 

Even in wolf form, Junhong winced as Yongguk let out a threatening growl that shook the omega’s soul, and the man jumped as Jongup said, “You’ve just insulted our alpha, so your wish might come true.”

 

The man shrugged as he backed up against the wall, still watching everyone carefully as he clutched his hand to a wound right below his sternum-if Youngjae could smile, he would. _That woman is something else…._

 

The room stank of urine, sweat and nervousness as Himchan shared a quick eye conversation with Yongguk before speaking again, “Speak. Are there many others in your pack? How did you find us?”

 

The man spat a glob of yellow at Himchan’s feet, but the black eyed man didn’t even flinch, “This ain’t no cop show-and I don’t have to tell you noth-”

 

That was as far as the man got before Yongguk opened his massive jaw and lunged for the man’s leg, snapping it shut with all the force he could muster-

 

-there was a clear, awful,snapping sound, and the man screamed as his calf was broken and suddenly bleeding, and as Yongguk began to chew down viciously, Himchan continued as though nothing had happened, “How many people run with you? How did you find us?”

 

The man gasped, “We-we-we’re just a group of stragglers, _fuck_!!!Maybe 7, 8 of us, well 5, including me and the 2 you killed,” All of the shifters in the room knew that the man’s body was working overtime to heal this new injury- but it would only do so once there was nothing obstructing the wound-currently, Yongguk’s fangs were blocking the way to healing, and the man knew that.

 

“T-t-there’s nothing **special** about you f-f-fuckers, we were looking for a place to crash, to a-a-avoid this storm,” even in his agony, the man grinned up at Daehyun, “Heh-heh, so you’re the one Sean got to first……y-y-you’ll have to _p-p-pay_ for sex for the **rest of your life**!!! _No woman wants to f-f-fuck an ugly man_.”

 

Yongguk heard the sharp hitch in Daehyun’s throat and twisted his head on the man’s leg-

 

-the man screamed again as now his knee was deliberately popped out of socket, causing searing pain to go shooting up his whole hip, and Himchan pressed on in his deceptively calm voice, “So, there’s 5 more of you out there……a pity. No one seems to care about you,” Himchan gestured vaguely, “No one even came to _look_ for you. How tragic.”

 

The man swatted at Yongguk’s head, but it was like a chipmunk fighting a bear- Yongguk simply sat down on the man's broken leg, keeping his teeth firmly in place as the man choked out, huffing between pain spasms, “I’d ra-ra-rather be by myself that with these s-s-soft swaddle fucks you call a _‘pack’_ ,” he laughed as he pointed to them all, “You all are **pathetic**!!!Losers!!!We are s-s-s-supposed to be at the t-t-top of the motherfucking food ch-ch-chain, and here you are playing lovey d-dovey with each other in a **shack** on a m-mountain. _W-where’s your fucking wolf pride?_ ”

 

Jongup bristled, “Hyung has taught us to live well, to make peace within ourselves. We aren’t monsters like you,” the man sneered, “Oh really? The w-w-woman, what does she _think of you_?” Junhong’s ears twitched, but the man saw it all, “Oh my g-god, she isn’t even one of ** _us_** ,” the man collapsed in a fit of insane giggles as Himchan reached down to run his uninjured hand once through Junhong’s back hair before straightening up, “If you guys are _‘not monsters’_ , then why haven’t you _told_ her what you are? Heh heh….hahahahahah,” the man licked his lips, “I should’ve taken a bite out of the bitch’s arm for this….. **I owe her** , and I owe her well for what she’s done to me!!”

 

Daehyun didn’t care about his face anymore-stepping forward, he started to shift but Himchan stuck out his arm and held him back from taking anymore steps forward, “No, he isn’t worth it.”

 

The man leaned forward in a show of bravado, “Go ahead!!Do your _fucking_ w-w-worst!!I’m **ten times** the man you lot w-will ever be!!!You cowards-c-c-an’t even even the odds for one man, what- are you **_s-s-scared_**?!”

 

Yongguk looked eyes with Himchan before deliberately taking his teeth out of the man’s leg, backing off and licking his chops slowly as Himchan smiled, “Here, we’ll back off. One on one. It’ll be your last wish on this earth.”

 

 Yongguk looked at each of his pack, his family, and they all looked back at him, waiting on his orders. Yongguk could see it in each facial tick, each posed eyebrows and tight lips, fires of revenge burning in their eyes and the call of the hunt in their souls, and as the man struggled to shift back to his wolf form, clearly scared by the tactic change the alpha’s eyes landed on his beloved omega, standing and trembling, not out of fear, but of rage, and let out a very low growl, _do it._ _For all of us_.

 

The man barely hit the ground on all fours before Junhong leaped forward with a deafening growl and fangs extended-Yongguk jumped out of the way as Youngjae circled anxiously from the sides watching as the other wolf tried to fight back, but with little success as Junhong’s sheer anger overtook whatever the other one was planning-

-Junhong had spent the last years of his adolescence with these hyungs, his new family. Himchan cooked for him, Daehyun sang him to sleep on rough nights, Youngjae taught him stuff, and Jongup ran with him. Yongguk…

 

Yongguk was both an older brother and a father figure to the omega. All the times they spent alone before the others joined them, the nights they talked around a small fire about their dreams, their past lives…..and now a new friend,_____ in the picture. All of the opportunities he was grateful for, and the second chance at life he was given, only for it to be threatened by this creep, this _thing_ that was _less_ than a man.

 

Junhong leapt and slashed, growled and rolled as the man tried feinting a few times, both wolves leaping for each other’s underbellies and rolling around in the dust of the shed, with the man slamming Junhong against the back wall of the shed with enough force that Daehyun shuddered, but Junhong jumped right back up again-

 

-and in a vicious swing of his head, Junhong sank his fangs into the other wolf’s now exposed neck and twisted sharply on his way down, ripping open the wolf’s throat from jaw to chest and stood over him, his ears high and jutting forward. It was Junhong’s first kill.

 

Yongguk nodded to Youngjae, as the other wolves straightened up and shifted into their human selves, with Junhong taking a moment to do the same. The blow was fatal, and as the life faded from the wolf’s eyes, Yongguk wanted to grant him the small honor of seeing his enemies face to face. Junhong stood on shaky legs as he stepped over the wolf and came back to stand near Himchan, but Yongguk was as firm as ever, “Your ghost may come back and haunt us, but that’s it- you have no more power over here. Let your people come. Let them not come. _We will be ready_.”

 

The wolf’s eyes closed, and as soon as Himchan could no longer hear its breathing, he clasped Junhong firmly around the neck and pulled him into a hug, Youngjae not far behind as Daehyun and Jongup surrounded them, and Yongguk rested his head against Junhong’s trembling shoulder as for a few moments, no one spoke.

 

The air was alive and almost crackled with static energy as everyone could sense what the others were feeling-relief, trepidation, love, affection, bloodlust, tired- and Yongguk let out a long sigh as his heartbeat began to align with the others, “You all go inside-I’ll drag the body to the borders,” but Himchan smiled, “We’ll wait right here for you.”


	4. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the ending, I sorta wanted to make it longer, I sorta didn't wanna get too crazy with it (currently at 24k words and counting). I dunno. I really enjoy ZainBAP's work, so check out the original story!!!

You were sleeping peacefully on Himchan’s bed, nestled down in the soft downy comforter and pillows that felt absolutely divine to your exhausted body.

 

At one point, a certain man with black eyes peered in to check on you, and he smiled as he carefully covered you with a blanket that was falling off the bed and padded out, making sure not to disturb you as you rolled to your side and kept sleeping.

 

Another man, a tanner man with a long, healing gash on his jaw and a friend with bangs stood at the side of the bed, watching you rest before walking out, the beginnings of an argument starting up in the hall about an unfinished poker game as soon as you were out of earshot.

 

Two men, a short muscled one and the tallest one in the house, came over on either side of the bed and watched you, as you were now sleeping on your stomach, with one arm underneath your pillow and a foot sticking out from underneath the blanket. The muscled man set down a bottle of juice and a few of the rolls from dinner on the lamp table right next to the bed, but the tallest man shifted to his wolf form.

 

The other man looked as though he wanted to say something, but then their eyes locked, and after a short pause, the man conceded, nodding his head in simple understanding as the wolf circled the bed slowly, his breathing low and even.

 

The wolf climbed up onto the bed and nuzzled you carefully on the cheek before settling down at the foot of the bed, curling up so it could go to sleep as well. The shortest man pats the wolf on the head before taking his leave.

 

The final man, the one with haunted eyes, does one final check as dawn approaches and the rest of the house is pretty much asleep, most heart beats slowly starting to sync up with each other. Peering into the room, his sharp eyes can pick out two shapes on the bed, and two intermingling scents. The man smiles, and looks to the black eyed man in the hallway, nodding as they touch each other lightly before the older one murmurs a goodnight and takes his leave.

 

Once the man is in his attic reprieve, he lays on his mattress and sighs, looking up at the roof. He rolls to his side and thinks about the future. He thinks about his pack. He thinks about his new acquaintance. He thinks about his home. He thinks about his enemies. He reflects on his enemies words, and potential threats on the horizon. He dances around despair, and the fragility of hope. He thinks about dinner rolls, and stew. He thinks about smiles and laughter at the dinner table.He thinks about healing. He reflects on all of that, smiles, and then, for the first time in a very long time, goes into a peaceful sleep.

 

 


End file.
